My Little Buddies

This past Saturday I had the chance to hang out with my little buddies Ellie and Kara. I really really really like playing with them and hanging out with them. It is so cute whenever I see Ellie and Kara because they typically yell my name really loud and then proceed to tell Nate or Louise that I am there. With the lack of younger siblings over here (yes, I miss Timmy and Emily a lot), I have come to savor any chance that I get to play with Ellie and Kara and or any other younger kids. Anyways on Saturday I helped give Louise the day off by playing with Ellie and Kara. We did everything. We played chase, hide and go seek and ring around the rosie. We watched a drive in movie, talked on the phone and made grass soup for each other. We played with chalk, watched a real movie, and ran around the house. Both Ellie and Kara are very happy kids. They laugh so much and its so much fun to be their friend. It just so neat when they are smiling and laughing, which is almost all the time.
On two occasions Ellie has asked me to become part of her family. The last one was last night when we were driving back from the Harvest Festival and they were giving me a ride back to the Lighthouse and Ellie said "Mommy, Jeremy is going to be part of our family and he is going to live with us." What she said meant a lot to me. I smiled big and Louise proceeded to explain to Ellie that I'm welcome anytime, but my bed is at the Lighthouse. Nonetheless, it feels good to be a part of the Johnson family, even if its just a little bit. I might actually live with them upon my return to Yokosuka after Christmas, but I'm not sure about that yet. Anyways, thanks Nate and Louise for sharing your girls with me and for letting me be a part of your family. All the times at the Johnson house have been great and its almost a 100% guarantee that Ellie will ask me in her little almost 4 year old voice "Jeremy, do you want to play with me?" Of course, my answer is yes.

The 100 Yen Store

Here in Japan, instead of 99 cent stores, there are 100 Yen stores. I seem to frequent the 100 Yen store quite a bit on my way back to the Lighthouse and I thought I could tell you how cool they are. First off, its the 100 Yen store, which means everything costs 100 yen, and because it is only 100 yen its cheaper than the dollar store. I think right now yen is running at like 117 to the dollar so really everything in the 100 yen costs around 85 cents. Honestly, everything, well not everything, but a lot of things to me seem are worth more than 100 yen, so every time I shop there I feel like I'm getting a deal.
The 100 Yen store has pretty much everything you need. You can get school supplies, Christmas decorations (its Christmas in the stores already), socks, blank CDS, good food that I like, really gross food that I'm never going to try, and even candy. Pretty much if you ever visit Japan you need to go to the 100 Yen store. I provided a picture of a sign for the 100 Yen store so that you will be able to find it. Normally there are signs, posters, and more signs that let you know you are in the 100 Yen store so you can't miss it.

Just doing their part.

So almost everyday when I am walking or bike riding into the base I see people sweeping the sidewalk. These people aren't official sidewalk sweepers or cleaners, but they are out there before their shop opens up sweeping the sidewalk. I have seen people spraying the sidewalk off and doing other things, but for the most part I see people sweeping. At first, I was kind of like "Huh, I've never really seen that before," and now it seems a little more normal, but I still don't think that people see it or do it in the States. It just intrigues me thinking about how their is no specific job, but everyone seems to do it. And when there are a lot of people doing it, its effective. One thing that I have noticed is that most people in Japan do things even if it is just a small part. I am thinking that they do things so as not to be shamed, but I would like to think that people do it out of the kindness of their heart.

I really like the picture where you can see the two different people sweeping because it shows that they are both doing their part. Even though they only swept the 15" by 15" square of sidewalk in front of their store, they still did it. When I go to certain areas I am surprised to see how clean things are. I mean there is always a piece of trash or two, but even in high traffic areas it is pretty clean. Anyways I think that is about it on this subject. I just thought that I could share with you about the sidewalk sweepers. I think they are super cool.

Putt Putt

Another one of the things that I really enjoy doing and plan on doing more is hanging out with the students. Twice a week I go to the middle school for lunch and I get to hang out with the kids I know, but I also get to reach out to a whole different group of kids. It is a lot of fun and will write about it more in a future blog.

Anyways, yesterday after Bible Study I hung out with some of my middle schoolers. We got some lunch at the food court and then went golfing. We visited the local Putt Putt Course on base and then hit a bucket of balls at the driving range. It is really cool because we are able to rent clubs at the gym for free, the Putt Putt course is free, and a bucket of balls only cost a dollar. So anyways, Zach, Cameron, and I spent the afternoon perfecting our golf skills in the only way middle schoolers can do it, a goofy way. The Putt Putt course was empty so after finishing the regulation nine hole course we made our own course. We hit from hole 9 to hole 1, but of course, we did it all through our legs or with our eyes closed. We had some good laughs and one litte scare when we knocked a big spider out of a tree and it proceeded to attack Zach. Not really, but we jumped of course. After hitting balls at the driving range we picked up some ice cream and then hung out till they needed to go home.

Meet My Sunday School Class

I would like to introduce you all to my Sunday School class. This class is probably my favorite things that I get to do with the students right now. We meet from 11-12 on Sundays and are going through Romans. This past week we went through Romans 3:9-31 and talked about how even though we are sinners, God still gave us a way out. I really really really enjoy teaching this class, but I enjoy even more when these kids ask questions and I can tell that they are really thinking about what God is teaching them.

Typically, the kids show up at 10:45. This past week though I didn't go to the morning service because I was going to the evening service, but I wasn't in the classroom as early as I normally am. I still showed up at like 10:40, but the kids were already looking for me. It was just kind of funny and it made me laugh inside. Anyways, we spend those 15 minutes talking about whatever happened that week and make each other laugh. The first half of the class I normally have a game planned or an activity thing planned. This week we started going through the House of the New Testament to teach the students the books of the New Testament. (Thanks Dave!) Then we did some speed Bible verse finding, where the students start with their Bible closed on the table and then I tell them a verse and they race to find it and then raise their hand. It was a lot of fun. The second half of the class is when we study. As I said before, I really love doing this. It makes my day when one of the kids asks a question that is insightful and it always gets me excited knowing that they're really thinking about what we are studying. I've never really taught that much before, but I love it when I feel like the kids get it and understand what the Bible is saying. So there you have it. All these kids are really cool and I feel really blessed to be their leader.

Staff Meetings

In the past couple of weeks it has become the tradition of the youth group staff to go out to dinner after youth group. Each week we try and hit a new hot spot and experience new food. This past week the group decided that it was time for sushi, and that we should go to Nate's favorite sushi place on the way to his house. We always have to figure out rides and who's driving (which is only a couple of choices), but it always seems to work out that everyone can go. Then we travel to the destination and enjoy great Japanese food. Well, actually we went to T.G.I Friday's one night, but we still have a good time.

It has been a lot of fun to talk with the different staff members. Some are in the Navy, one is a teacher at the middle school, and the others do some other stuff. It has been really cool to just talk and share with each other. These pictures are from our sushi night. That is Kate, Red and me. Kate is Nate's sister-in-law (or Louise's sister, however you look at it) and Red is a friend of mine who is in the Navy. The cups we are holding are the tea cups that go around on the conveyor belt by our table. One thing that is different for me is that most places don't offer water first to the customers and I always drink like 8 cups of water when I go out, so I have had to get into the habit of not always drinking water or asking for some. Now that I know water in Japanese I can ask for it, but the first couple of times that I went out I always left thirsty. Anyways the sushi was good, the fellowship was good, and its something that I hope continues.

Kamakura

I would like to apologize for not writing so much lately. I hope you will forgive me for that. I just haven't felt like blogging much lately, but anyways here is a blog. So about 4 o'clock on Monday (my day off) I decided that I wanted to go somewhere. I had spent most of the morning at The Lighthouse and just felt like I needed to go somewhere. After getting some stuff together, I decided that I wanted to go to Kamakura. Kamakura as far as I understand is one of th most historic cities in Japan and at one point was the capital of Japan. However, on this particular day I don't think I saw all the historical stuff because I left so late and the sun was already going down. Anyways after a long walk to the train station (which was actually pretty nice; all those pictures of the ocean are on my to the train station) I got on a train to Kamakura. It was a relatively short train ride and is pretty cheap too. When I got off I proceeded to roam around the city and look at all the shops and stuff. I made sure that I watched where I was going because I didn't want to get lost and have to try and find my way back. In any case, Kamakura was pretty neat. I saw some good stores without beautiful artwork in them. I enjoyed walking around, smelling all the new smells, and seeing more of the Japanese culture. However, my highlight of the day was when I came upon a Patagonia store. Patagonia is expensive enough in Ventura and I can tell you that it is even more expensive in Japan. I thought it would be cool to get a shirt with Patagonia and Japan on it, but they only had them online. Anyways that was about all the excitement from my "adventure" to Kamakura.

Youth Group

I think it is about time that I introduce you to the youth group here. If you don't know both youth groups meet on Wednesday night. "Quest" (the middle school youth group) meets from 4 to 5:30 and then "One-Way" (the high school youth group) meets from 6:30 to 8. However, the middle school students tend to stay late and the high school students tend to come early, so they both kind of blend together. Youth group is awesome! We have so much fun together and really get into the Word. Lately, we have been talking about the reality of heaven and hell. It has been really cool to see the students focused on what Nate shares and to see them ask good questions. I feel like the students are learning a lot and are being challenged a lot in their faith through youth group and the recent events. It is so cool to see students growing in the first month that I have been here.
One of the things that always happens at youth group is that I break a sweat. I don't think there has been one night where I haven't broken a sweat. We are always playing games, shooting fingerblasters, throwing balls, or just running around. I really really enjoy youth group and I love playing games, but I enjoy talking to the students and seeing them grow so much more. I have begun to build relationships with some of the students and hope to soon hang out with them outside of youth group. God is awesome and I am so blessed to be involved with these students lives.




So anyways, these pictures are from the last week of youth group. The first picture you see is a random one from youth group. Its just us being goofy. Mike, one of the staff guys who is really cool, is the one with the pizza hanging from his mouth. The other ones are from a recent event that we had for the middle school students. It was a "Fingerblaster and Dodgeball Night". We set up an American Gladiator arena that the kids had to run through without getting shot by a fingerblaster. It was a lot of fun doing that and we also had a lot of fun playing dodgeball in another gym.

Fujikyu Round 2

This past weekend we had round #2 of our retreats to Camp Fuji. This time it was with the high school youth group. The group was a little bit smaller, but I think the weekend went really well and that the kids learned a lot of things. If anything, I felt the group grew closer as we were able to open up more and really discus what we were all about. The weekend's theme was "Bodybuilding". Not physical bodybuilding, but spiritual bodybuilding. This weekend was also joined with a youth group from Yokota Air Force Base and it was a blast having them there. Both groups got together well and I feel like we were able to learn about our roles as different youth groups and also as the bigger body of Christ.

The highlight of my weekend there was on Sunday when the whole group went though and completed the Marine obstacle course. It was just really cool to see all the kids, girls and guys, go through the obstacle. It was easy for some and really a challenge for others, but everyone was able to get through it. It was really cool to see the kids encourage each other and physically help each other get over obstacle, just like they need to and have helped each other spiritually get over obstacles. The Marines were so patient with everyone and it was really neat to see them help each person along. It was also cool seeing them do the course themselves and just how strong they are.

The retreat ended on Monday with another round of long lines at Fujikyu. It was fun going on the rollercoasters and chatting with the students throughout the day. Oh, the food there was good also. Overall, I feel that the weekend went really well and that it was something all the students needed.

Fuji san!

This past weekend we had a high school retreat to Camp Fuji. The reason why it is called Camp Fuji is because it is at the base of Mt. Fuji. The weather this weekend was fabulous and Mt. Fuji was clear almost the whole weekend. As far as I know, Mt. Fuji is the largest mountain in Japan and is a volcano. I can't say that it was the prettiest mountain I have ever seen, but I'm sure that it looks a lot prettier in the winter when there is snow on top. Its not very pretty because it doesn't have any trees or plants on it because its a volcano. Mainly it consist of black slate or whatever, which I heard makes the hike up it really hard. Unfortunately I missed the months where the trails are open and I think I will be gone before Mt. Fuji opens up again. Anyways these are some of the pictures that I thought you would enjoy of Mount Fuji. It was pretty spectacular being on this Marine baseand waking up to see this for a couple of days.

Disclaimer and Decision

I would like to take this moment to explain to you that my socks dilemna was not a crisis, but more of a form of entertainment. I just want to make it clear that I will not be changing my socks and that my whole dilemna was not really a dilemna. I just thought that it was something that I would like to share with you and it was something that I liked writing about. However, I feel like many people were concerned or took "my socks" more seriously than I thought they would. Honestly, I wanted your honest opinion about my socks, but my socks aren't the deciding factor if people like me over here. Moreover, I thought that it would entertain you and not create this fear inside of you that "Jeremy is not going to be able to reach these kids because he doesn't wear ankle socks." In fact, I think that it has opened up some doors because kids are able to laugh at me and I am able to talk with them about my socks. Well that's about all I have to say about that.

My Ride!

I would like to introduce you to my ride. Pretty sweet, huh? This is my bike. I don't have a name for it yet, but I will soon. If you can't tell this thing is set up. Its got the basket, the light, the reflectors, the cool lock on the back wheel (so that no one can ride it away, but they can still steal it), two tires, two wheels, and even some handlebars and a seat. Oh, did I mention it has gears and that the light turner onner thing is on the handlebars also. Oh, and I almost forgot, its has not one, but two bells. And of course, I couldn't forget to mention the sweet, aerodynamic helmet that came with it. I know you're jealous. (By the way, this bike was free (for me). A guy name Joel, that I never met, left his bike here and it became mine. So thanks Joel if you ever read this. I am very thankful to inherit your wonderful bike.) So that was my introduction to my bike. I hope you all enjoyed it.

Oh, one, well two last things. My bike has the cool rain and mud protector wheel things that keep me from getting the skunk stripe when I ride in bad weather. And, my bike has brakes! (Brakes are very important for riding in the streets and on the sidewalks of Japan because you never know when a car is going to stop moving in front of you or a large crowd of people is going to come at you. Also, blue street (the street I ride down to the base) has a big hill and without brakes I would probably eat it really hard.) Thanks for reading!

My Socks. Help!

Alright, if there is any blog that you comment on please comment on this one. Not because its important, but because my coolness is at stake. Apparently my socks are not cool. Apparently ankle socks are in and that would make me out. Honestly this is the way that I have worn my socks for my whole life and I am not planning on changing. However, if all your comments sway me to do so I might change.
My socks have been pointed out as not cool a couple of times since I've been here. I've always considered my socks as the typical southern California surfer look and have done it for all my life as I said before, but what is cool in CA is not always cool everywhere else. One time in particular I was at the middle school eating lunch and hanging with the kids. Nate was talking with some girls and I was playing football and he called me over so that I could meet some of the kids. Not far into our conversation, the focus was changed to my socks and dress style. Thankfully, I was cool for the most part, but my socks were way out. This one little girl even had the guts to tell me, "No offense or anything, but your socks are way out of style. You should go onto What Not to Wear." I left that conversation a few seconds later, but not before I enjoyed a good laugh. I can only recall one time in CA that my socks were brought up and I'll be honest, I think that my style of dress is pretty dang cool. (Not really, but go with me here.) So, as you can see, I'm in a little dilemna. Help me please. Thanks.

-The guy with the weird socks

Gyoza Goodness

Besides the peanut butter sandwiches from the 7/11, my favorite food food is called the gyoza. It's very relatable to a dumpling or something of that sort. It is just so good. There is restaurant near the Lighthouse called A.G. Sons (check spelling on that, but I don't know, the signs in kanji) and it makes gyozas and I am often tempted to stop there on my way home. They also make really good, spicy ramen and are open till one in the morning. I will be definitely be making some midnight snack runs there. Anyways, back to the gyoza. I don't really know what's in it, but I like it a lot. Today Nate and I bought some from a store and microwaved them at his house and they were still super good. If any you ever get the chance make sure you order two plates of gyozas because one is definitely not enough (unless you have a big bowl of ramen next to you).

Courtesy

Here is a picture of people lining up for the bus. I don't think I have seen this anywhere else. Everyone here is so polite and nice and I find it neat that the Japanese people show so much courtesy and respect. At trains stations and bus stops people live up. There are designated seats for the eldery, pregnant, or handicapped and people pay attention to these things.

12 o'clock and safe!

My main form of transportation here in Japan is walking. I ride a bike sometimes, I can take taxis (taxis are way expensive though), and sometimes ride the train, but for the most part I walk. I've walked home pretty late at night sometimes and the purpose of my blog was to tell you about how safe it is and how safe I feel in Japan. These pictures here are of the train station near Nate and Louise's house at like 10 o’clock. For the most part it is empty, but there are still people taking the trains and the streets are not empty. In L.A. walking home past 10 o'clock at night, I would probably be scared of getting shot. Here though, even though I'm in a foreign country I feel really safe. I walk through alleys and side streets and feel completely safe. I also see little kids sometimes taking trains by themselves and walking around. Anyways that's all I have on this subject.

Best Peanut Butter Sandwich Ever!

So I've come to the conclusion that Japan has good food. Not only is the Japanese food good, but the American style food is good too. Also, the seven eleven stores here are awesome. You can get good food from a seven eleven and my favorite things from there right now are these peanut butter sandwich. Nate's explanation of why food is so good in Japan is that they put crack in all of the good stuff. And I firmly believe that there must be something in these sandwiches because they are so good. I don't think I have ever tasted a better peanut butter sandwich. I am a huge fan or PB and J sandwiches and have lived off of them my whole life and now I've found an even better sandwich. I think you all should try these and I would like to send everyone one, but I don't think I can do that.

Oh and another cool thing about the 7/11 stores here that they are convenient stores. I'm sure right now some of you are like "we have those here in the States," and you do, but can you pay your bills at a convenient store? Can you walk in, give your bill to the cashier, pay the amount, and walk out in two minutes? You can here and these stores have definitely put the convenient in convenient stores.

Japan's amazing, technologically advanced cell phones...

I have been asked a couple of times to take pictures of my cell phone. So here it is, my amazing cell phone. It is fantastic if you can't tell. Well actually it is not really that cool. It's just another cell phone, except this one I don't know how to use about a quarter of its functions. We had to download instructions in English (because the directions in the box were Japanese) and I never read the directions so I can do its basic things. I'm sure though that this phone has some crazy things in it, but I don't think I will ever figure them out. If you look closely you can see the Japanese symbols for the numbers and stuff like that. Honestly, I don't really like it because I always have to switch the menus to English and its just not as easy as my phone back home. Be thankful though that you live in the States because the plans that you get here are really bad (so I've heard). I don't know what plan I'm on, but everyone tells me that the plans here stink. Anyways I hope you like my stupendous phone because I don't.

Big Spider

This is one of the spiders that died the other night in the Lighthouse. It was by far the biggest spider I have ever seen crawling around. We had fun taking pictures of it and trying to catch it, but eventually it was time for it to go. I have been told that spiders in Japan jump; the small ones tend to jump more, but the big ones are questionable. Anyways this is a big spider and I thought you all should see it.