Merry Christmas Eve Eve!

It's almost been a month since I typed a blog. Tomorrow is Christmas Eve, I can't believe it! In some ways my friend and I decided Japan is more Christmasy than home...which at the time seemed true, but I just realized he's from Canada, so I guess we can't really agree on that can we? Thats hilarious. Oh well. It's real weird that it's not really cold here and I haven't watched A Christmas Story. I did walk by a church today and saw a nativity scene. That was Christmasy, and there is Christmas music playing in the streets of Hiroshima, but it just isn't the same. I think part of it has to do with the fact that I actually have to ask my students if they exchange gifts or even celebrate Christmas. Some of them don't, to them its just another day. Which I understand, but that doesn't make it any less strange to hear.

My friend Megan had her baby! Mallory Claire. I'm so sad that I couldn't be there with her! =(
Her baby will almost be a year old when I get home, that's so bizarre! Aww, sad.

Work is fine, Japan is still fun. I'm going to Tokyo next week! I'm leaving Friday actually, I'm so excited! WHAAA!
Last weekend I was hanging out with my friend Niko in Hiroshima, we decided to go on a search for ridiculous t-shirts (an ever so popular commodity in Japan) **I'm pretty sure it's a major stretch to use commodity there, but I'm going to do so anyway** Anyway, this is what we ended up with. Niko's has the same santa face, but sometimes blurred. And mine says " The hippopotamus barks at the rainbow". Just think about that for a while.

The weekend before that, I went to Miyajima to hang out and on my way, I had a little adventure (some of you have already heard this, but here it goes again): It's a beautiful, slightly chilly day, I'm wearing my fantastic bright green skirt and a sweater and a jean jacket and some black winter boots. I've spent the first part of the day being a kind person taking my new co-worker out to lunch for her birthday. But my friend Patrick (who lives like 5 hours away) is visiting Hiroshima, so I'm kind of in a hurry to go and see him and my other two friends. So after lunch ends, I scurry on over to the station and see that a rapid train, which will get me to Hiroshima in 20 minutes instead of 45, is about to leave, So I run down the stairs and get there just in time to see the doors close and the train leave. This lovely old Japanese lady sees this misfortune of mine and tries to comfort me in Japanese, I assume she's saying something like "oh no, it looks like you just missed it, oh well, another train will come my dear" but I have no idea really, so I just say "Hai, hai, ok, desu" (yes yes it's ok or I'm ok, or something is ok) and take a seat. Not 2 seconds later another lovely old lady comes and offers me an orange. So I sit there with two old ladies and eat an orange. It was so cute.
Another train finally comes and I arrive in Hiroshima 45 minutes later. I look at the screen and see that my train is leaving from track one in 2 minutes (I'm at track 4) So I again take off running (which is highly discouraged in Japanese train stations) I make it down the stairs, see that the doors are still open and think to myself "YES!! I have done it, I will make this train," and as soon as this thought goes through my head..BOOOOOOM I fall down to the ground, on my hands and knees. My head phones fly off, stuff spills out of my purse. All these people are like "diajobu desuka, diajobu desuka" (are you ok? are you ok?) and I stand up and shout "HAI, DIAJOBU DESU! (YES I'M OK!) and run on to the train fully packed with people who just saw me crash to the ground. Oh my goodness it was so hilarious! If could only you have seen it. Here is a picture of the bruises on my knees. They have just now gone away.

Ok, one more quick thing and one more picture before I go. I tried to make cookies.. and I have no oven... the following is what happened... I have no words.