Tuesday, March 24, 2009

First, thanks to Mom and Dad, Dee, Charles and Zen, and of course our most loyal fan, Mikki! We are so happy you checked out our blog. Please continue to do so, as we are now definitely going to keep it up-dated.

Our long break is coming to an end (mid February-April 7), and although we have enjoyed our time off, it will be nice to get back to work. The cherry blossoms are beginning to bloom and the days are getting warmer!

This month, L’Shawn attended the graduation of this year’s senior class. Our friends Eriko, Ryoko, Sanae, Arisa, Ayu, and Hiromi graduated. You know how graduations are... (Doug started bringing books to them years ago.) Try having the whole thing in super-formal Japanese that you can't understand a word of! After the exciting ceremony, our friends Jon, Jordan, some of the graduates, and L’Shawn went to an Italian restaurant in Sannomiya (downtown Kobe). It was great fun, except that Doug wasn’t there, and we ate outside and it was particularly chilly that day.

A few days after the graduation ceremony, Jordan, Jon, and L’Shawn went to the graduation party, a fancy affair hosted by the graduates. It was in a swanky hotel, and we had to wear formal attire. Almost all of the graduates wore a special graduation kimono called a hakama. All the ladies were decked out in their best hakama, and their hair ornaments were stunning! (See photos). Towards the end of the party, all the teachers (including L’Shawn) were asked to come on stage where we were presented lovely flower bouquets. L’Shawn’s was enormous and *really* fragrant! It was a great party, but it wasn’t as fun as it could have been because Doug couldn’t be there since the party was strictly for Kaisei graduates and their teachers. (And everyone knows a party isn't a party without a Doug!)

After the graduation party, we had a going away bash for Jordan and Jon at a seafood buffet. We had a great time, and it was especially fun because Doug got to go to that party. A week after the farewell bash, we said good bye to our friend Jordan, who returned to Colorado, and a week after saying good bye to Jordan, we said good bye to Jon, who moved a few towns down the track from us. He will be working in Osaka, so we probably won't get to see him as much now, but we'll stay in touch.

We went to Costco with a couple of friends the other day, which was unexpected and more fun than it sounds. We scored a mongo jar of peanut butter, a huge jar of taco seasoning, and some brownie mix. We also had some pizza at the food court that was pretty good.

In other news, Mary Kay, who was once our boss, is replacing Jon both as our next-door neighbor and as L'Shawn's colleague, which should be interesting. We're looking forward to seeing her, showing her around, and doing some fun stuff together.

Well, that’s our news so far. More to come... Oh cool! Maha Go Go (Speed Racer) is on, be seein' ya! (^^)v

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