No Batteries

So all pictures and video will be brought to you by iPhone,except the 1st one, thanks Steve Jobs!

It has been a LONG time since I have blogged.  Honestly, the life has been sucked out of my love for blogging since my mother's death.  I figure, who really wants to keep up with me? Mom does, now that she is gone who wants to keep up with me?  I remembered though, I also enjoy blogging for myself, I decided to channel that and write again, time permitting because...

The derby monster has eaten my life!

"Talya, what did you do today?".....Derby.
"How is Japan doing?"....Derby.
"You going to go to school while you are in Japan?".....Derby school.
I have shared and have not shared that I am with a derby league here on Okinawa.  The Kokeshi Roller Dolls.  Check us out at http://www.kokeshirollerdolls.com/ , yes the plug is out of the way.  I started back in December.  I was going to start before but after emailing the president of our league, yes, it is that serious, I decided I didn't have the time.  After Mark kept after me, I figured I would give it a go.  After Mom's disapproval and death, I struggled with skating but decided to give it a go.  What some people don't realize and some people do, I dabbled in Jackson, TN with derby when one of my friends was starting a league, the Hub City Roller Girls, they have now disbanded.  I have heard,"you, derby?!"  "I can't see you playing derby."  This annoys me to no end, more so because most that say that think they know me and really don't.  "Talya, athletic?!"  Many moons ago I was a 2nd degree black belt in tae kwon do, I was my school's top student...yes, I am indeed, athletic.  You don't realize your body doesn't lose that drive once you have trained to be an athlete.  It's easy to get back in shape again.  Now, do I think I am tough stuff in any sport, no, not at all, but do I give my all in any sport I set my mind to, yes.  I am a proud member of the Sake Bombers team.  For some reason the rest of the league sees us as a joke, but whatever, we love each other and we take our team seriously.  I happen to be the captain of the Sake Bombers as well.  I am suppose to be a co captain but for some reason, no one else wants to join me.  We had a great one but she decided to step down so she can take care of herself and her little baby, she is going to be a brand new mommy!  It's a family affair, Mark happens to be the head coach of my team.  It works best when you can get your spouse in to what you are doing because we do derby 3 days a week.  Now it's May  and our 1st official bout is right around the corner on May 14th.  I wish I could say I am excited, but I am more nervous than anything.  I am still ready to give it my all, but truth be told, I am not sure how long I will stay with it.  I love my derby sisters....most of them, I love the social aspect....most the time, but in the end, I don't believe I am willing to sacrifice my body to the sport.  It is dangerous, and I think I already proved to myself I can still get out there and be decent at something, don't let the fact that I am getting older slow me down.  In the end, the only person I owe anything to in this realm is myself.  I do enjoy the work out aspect of it, but hey, got skates will travel, watch out roads!

The butterfly garden

I wanted to write a quick little blurb about having the extreme honor of taking my students to the butterfly garden in northern Okinawa earlier this year...yes I know, we can already say earlier this year.  I was absolutely amazed and would love to go back myself as I love butterflies.  My kids hung in there too, they enjoyed it and most of them didn't cry.  They were pretty much okay as long as the butterflies kept their distance.  All in all, the kids loved their up close and personal encounter and so did I.  They got to watch a movie all the way up to the butterfly garden and back down to school.  It was a great day, taking the children to the restroom however was a nightmare, but I'd rather look at the upside of the trip with including a picnic and allowing them to run around a grassy area.  Since Japanese people love children they were never in anyone's way and they were allowed to just be kids. Here is a picture of a butterfly on Coco's water bottle.  Cocomi was none too happy, though the child in the picture is not Coco-chan, it is obvious, Kiera-chan wasn't having it either. 

Shuri Castle

I have been itching to go to Shuri Castle and Naha again for a long time now and I finally got to go one day last month during "birthday month".  We didn't get to see too much because it just so happened we pretty much got there when it closed, but I was okay with that because it was great just to get out with my husband and our friend Troy and see what Okinawa has to offer us besides derby, wait you mean there is more than derby on Okinawa!?  Shuri Castle has a rich history in the Ryukyu Kingdon, it was the capital for the country of Okinawa for many years.  Some may not realize that Okinawa was at once it's own country, but after many wars it became property of Japan.  They didn't even drive on the left side of the road until the 70s, then it was decided that it would be easier to change to the way things are on mainland Japan.  Of course Shuri Castle has had to change their plumbing situation as you will see in my video, there was an obvious need for a water and mouth wash fountain that Shuri realized and gave to it's visitors, but it was still nice to walk around and see the architecture of centuries past.  I am just so curious about what we will leave behind and what it will be like walking in our shadows centuries later.  I am hoping this is not my last visit to Shuri Castle while on Okinawa, but with Mark leaving soon, it is doubtful I will travel too far on my own, since those who know me know I hate to drive in Japan, but then again, it is also known that won't stop me from doing something I'd like to do. 

Here are my Shuri videos.  One is showing a feature that many toilets in Japan have.  If you don't want people to hear the noises that come out of your....body....you simply trigger the sound device beside you.  Sometimes it deploys whether you wave your hand or not.  There are flushing sounds and sometimes the oh so magical woodland creatures with running water sound (my favorite).  The other video is of me not being able to say no to having the chance to use the gargle station.

Now, that is it for today, I will blog again!!!  I got the fever back, now if I could just get fever back for other things, we won't go in to that.

Everyday Okinawa:

I no longer work at my school due to the fact that I need to be stress free for a bit, I am just hoping when I am ready to work again I can find a job quickly.

Mark will be leaving soon, deploying, you know how that goes.  You can come see me and keep me company, just know you'll be sleeping on the couch and will need to pay for gas if you want to go anywhere.

I am planning a trip back to see family as well.  I really wish I could see my dad and my Shirley as well.