Notes to Self

It's officially done. Matt and I sent off our JET applications to the Japanese Embassy. Now all we have to do is wait around until January to hear back. The whole process has been a lot like applying for a Green Card.

Lots forms to fill out, statements to write, documents to scramble for at the last minute. 

They want everything in triplicate, which totally ate up our paper supply. I will say though, that the Japanese officials are easier to get in touch with than the American ones. At least they let you leave a message on their machine and call you back with answers to your questions. Reaching American officials is about as easy as E.T. trying to phone home.

And once you do get through, they're mean. The Canadians aren't much better, but at least that part of the process is over, since Matt was approved for an Immigration Visa.

So now that I'm done I have a bit more time on my hands. I had cut my hours down at the Steeple People, where I volunteer, but look forward to getting back to sorting through vintage clothing and berating people for shoplifting from a non profit organization. The Steeple People (or Greeple as Matt likes to call it) is a church run thrift shop that sells donated house hold goods and clothing in order to donate the profits to local community organizations. It's a fun place to work, lots of busy people cleaning and sorting and is the kind of work I enjoy. I don't get paid, but I do get to take home items that may not be 'sellable'. So if there is a tiny snag in that cute Banana Republic sweater, they won't hang it on the floor. It gets sent to a recycling plant to make some sort of product that soaks up oil spills....OR....it ends up in my closet. 

Today is Black Friday. Apparently there is supposed to be some extreme shopping going on, as tradition dictates. I don't quite get it, especially during our current 'Economic Crisis' (I'm lovin' all the new catch phrases that Americans come up with for describing stuff. This one is almost better than Weapons of Mass Destruction...seems to instill about the same amount of fear in people. I guess that's the point though.) Why the day after you eat a big fat (not to mention pricy) greasy turkey meal is reserved for blowing even more of your budget, I don't know. 

Our Thanksgiving was pretty fantastic. We had turkey dinners twice. An early Thanksgiving was celebrated at Glenda and Walter's last week because more family was going to be around. I've never had a 'turkey roll' before, but I like the idea of spiraling spinach in between turkey meat. There must have been 3 different kinds of dessert and so many leftovers. Then we hit the table again at Ryan and Randy's for a scrumptous bird, loads of gravy and mashed potato's, and a pecan pie that almost ushered me into a diabetic coma after the first bite. I swear, I don't want to eat again until Christmas. 

I should get going. I've promised myself to walk to the library before I start my shift at the Steeple. I'm reading Nelson Mandela's "Long Walk to Freedom". Great book. It's just amazing that people fought so hard for freedom. I've never had to so much as lift a finger in a fight for my racial rights. It reminds me again how lucky we are in North America, and that's something to be grateful for.