Today marks 1 year since The Great North-Eastern Japan Earthquake.  It's so hard to believe that it's been a year already!  My town is just now starting to rebuild and is actually still knocking down unstable buildings.  There is so much damage left to fix, yet, already, so much has been cleaned up and fixed.

A year ago today I thought my aparmtment ( Read more... )

Feel free to skip this post if you don't want to here my somewhat angsty musings.  For some reason I have a hard time getting the cuts to work right, so I'm not going to bother trying tonight.

I'm trying to update more often but sometimes I just can't think of anything to say.  Seems like lately all I want to do is complain and I'm pretty sure most ( Read more... )

It's been 1 year, to the day, that I arrived in Iwaki. And it's been one hell of a year, both good and bad.

So let's see.

The GOOD!!

- I moved to Japan! Came to the town of Izumi in Iwaki City.
- I got my first apartment! and what a nice apartment it was!! 2 rooms, livingroom with kitchen on the back wall.
- BEACH PARTIES!!!!  Fireworks!! Fun in the ( Read more... )

Another Earthquake...another tsunami warning.  At least the tsunmai didn't actually come, but it was a tense 30 or 40 minutes.  This one was a 7.1 in Miyagi. It was smallish here, but it was long and my apartment moved quite a bit.  Nothing fell of the shelves though. But it was quite evident by the feel of it that it was coming from far away and ( Read more... )

Today is day 4 with no earthquakes!!! YAY!!!  I'm still nervous when I think about it, but I've looked online and the surrounding areas have had small ones so it isn't like they just suddenly stopped, they just aren't right under me.  So maybe it's just finally slowing down.

Today has been interesting.  I taught all 4 of my gr. 5 classes before ( Read more... )

So the danger zone around the Dai-ichi plant has increased from 30km to 80km.  Iwaki is in that zone.  Not many people are left in Iwaki, most have left to either Ibaraki prefecture or Toochigi or Tokyo.    I need to talk to my supervisor, but it looks like I may be going back to Canada for a couple of weeks.  I am looking at leaving on Monday and ( Read more... )

I got to Peter's house ok.  I had a really nice taxi driver. I guess Kodama Sensei told him about my back issues because he asked me flat out about my back and wouldn't let me carry any of my bags! lol  He talked with me the entire drive and then when we got to Peter's I didn't know which apartment it was he came with me upstairs with my bags and ( Read more... )

I'm leaving my place.  Some of the other ALTs are all styaing together in Taira and my supervisor has called a taxi for me to go there too.  I will be leaving in about 20 minutes.  Bringing all my food with me, some clothes and pillow, and my laptop.  Bringing my passport just in case. Don't know what is going to happen.  Yotsukura, 4 stops from me ( Read more... )

I HATE AFTERSHOCKS!!!  You'd think after 2 days there would be less....or at least weaker.  I want to sleep! I'm so tired that I'm freezing! It's 19C in my room and I have my heat turned on high.

I have spent the last 33 hours without internet.  It is back now, but no idea for how long. Hopefully it will stick around this time.  My phone is also on ( Read more... )

If I didn't already know that my visit school likes me, then I certainly do now ( Read more... )