Interim Solution

I still don't have internet service. I am not convinced that I will ever have internet service. The owner of this house said "hell, no, you cannot drill a hole in my wall." So, there's that. There is a second internet provider coming out to take a look at the house tomorrow, but I can't imagine the answer will be much different about drilling a hole in the wall in order to pull together the proper wiring for internet service. Meanwhile, I remembered over the weekend that our cell phone company mentioned way back on day 1 when we bought our phones that they can be used as their own hotspots and that you can "tether" your computer to it to get internet service. So I immediately hooked this up. It's not perfect, but it will DO for now.

If you are asking yourself, "Why the hell won't the owner let a hole be drilled for a basic utility?" you are asking the same question I am. I have discovered that people here are somewhat rigid, and the rules are endless. Actually, the more I think about it, the more I realize that, in most of my travels, people in general usually seem to be a bit more rigid than in the states. I think that in all Americans there exists a certain amount of the old wild west. Meaning, we all sort of think that we can make things work in some way, even if we have been told we can't. We will bend the rules or talk someone into something if necessary, but damn it, we will make it work. But in other countries there seem to be more rigid rules, and people seem to be more apt to fall in line and abide by them. When the answer is, "No," you don't see people here saying, "Oh, yeah, well let me talk to your boss and we will see about that!" or going around or under or over whatever blockade there is in order to get what they want anyway. If this new internet company doesn't work I am going to have to look into a bigger version of what my phone already does. Hopefully I can make this happen without going too wild west on anyone.

In other news, the boys started preschool yesterday. Praise the lord, is what I say to that. I am excited for me, I mean them, on many levels. Circumstances have made it somewhat difficult up to this point for me to get a job that would pay enough to justify any sort of daycare for 2 kids, so I have been at home with them for most of 3 years. While a lot of that has been fun, a lot of it has also been exhausting and frustrating. I mean, let's face it: infants are a lot of work, and toddlers, while super funny and cute sometimes, are really just tiny tyrants hell-bent on getting their way at all costs. (Oh wait, that sounds like all the Americans I was just describing.) Anyway, the former is physically exhausting, the latter is so mentally exhausting I am surprised I haven't ended up on Jerry Springer yet for hurling one or the other of them out a window. Just kidding! No I'm not, yes I am, no I'm not.

But I digress. I am excited for them (truly) because they are going to be around lots of other kids, which they so need right now, they get to run around like maniacs, and hopefully they get to pick up at least some Japanese. They had a great first day, and tomorrow they go back for more. Yahoo! This preschool is unbelievable, too. The bus that picks them up has flowers and bunnies all over it, there is a giant rocket ship slide, they do things like plant potatoes, and the one English-speaking teacher called me the night after their first day to tell me how they did. It's like they go to Japanese Narnia twice a week. When the teacher on the bus came to get them, she had all of the kids at the bust stop line up with hands by their sides and shout, "OHIYO GOZIEMAS!" ("Good morning!") And when the bus dropped them off in the afternoon they all had to do the same thing and shout, "SYONARA!" ("Goodbye!) It was pretty much the most dear thing I've ever seen. If you are interested: http://mikuni.ed.jp/en/english/index_e_e.htm

Oh, and the UNIFORMS! The uniforms are flipping awesome. All school kids in Japan wear uniforms. They are all different depending on school and class, age, and gender. In general, the uniforms for preschool, kindergarten, and grammar school are hilarious. But they look even crazier on young American boys who normally wear things that can get dirty easily. I laughed the entire time I was helping them get dressed yesterday. Bottom line is that this is pretty much the most exciting thing that has happened yet. I can't wait to see how it goes on their second day!

Here are some pictures from the big morning...

Anthony and Jackson put on their shoes. (This is a BIG deal! You have to take off your shoes when you go into the school, so the boys had to learn to do this themselves before school started!)

The boys and I. (Please note how much more excited I am than they are at this moment.)

Boys waiting for the bus!

Goodbye, bus! Have fun, boys!!!