Sunday, September 27, 2009

Sunday...cause that's my fun day


What a wonderful Sunday. We slept in until almost 7 and then I accompanied Chris for his run on my bike. It was definitely warm out, but luckily there was some cloud cover and a breeze. Here's my sweetie pumping up my tires:
Despite it being almost October it is still warm here in Oki so we're trying to get on the water before the weather changes. It won't get cold here, just too chilly to be in the water. Today we decided to combine some fun time with some dog training. We're working hard with Rana and she's definitely getting better. She is much better on a leash and I really look forward to when the training starts involving distractions. That is where Rana needs help. She is just convinced that every person, dog, cat, whatever wants to be her friend and is determined to get over to where they are. I have got to be able to control her better. Anyway, today we were practicing getting her in the kayak. She loves the water, but is not so sure about the unsteadiness of the kayak. We practiced on shore first, then moved out to the water with me holding the kayak, and eventually built up to a 10 minute paddle where I paddled and Chris secured Rana. Trust me, I got the easy end of that bargain.
Chris is now busy making a fantastic chili for dinner. What a great day.
So, here's a little recap of last week when I went to Yokota Air Base near Tokyo. I was leaving on Sunday morning so I had to drop Rana off at Camp Canine on Saturday afternoon. Apparently she did very well, besides not wanting to get out of the wading pool. What can I say? She's a water dog and it's hot here! With Rana out of the house, Oscar was free to come out and party it up. He got some extra love and got to play with toys that are usually kept hidden because Rana eats them. Here's sweet kitty:
And his new favorite place to hide out:
(under the dog's feeding station)
Getting to Yokota was a real treat. We left Kadena at 6am to head to the airport. All went well and we landed at Haneda in Tokyo at 10:30 and the fun started. Nobody picked us up at the airport. My travel partner, Sarah, and I both called our bosses. Someone was definitely supposed to be there so we waited 2.5 hours searching every terminal just in case there was a mix up. Nobody ever came. So, we needed to figure out how to get to Yokota on our own. We discovered that there was no shuttle between this airport and the base and that the bus to the city outside the base doesn't run on Sundays. So we had to take a bus to Narita (the other Tokyo airport) and then take a shuttle from there to the base (a 3 hour ride). The final result being that instead of getting to base around noon we got there at 7:30pm. It was a long, frustrating travel day.
Luckily, the training made up for it. The trainers that came from Arizon's 4-H were awesome! They were enthusiastic, engaging, and about 90% of the training was hands-on. We learned new ice breakers, crafts, science experiments, how to set up 4-H clubs, and more. It was a lot of fun and it was very interesting to see Yokota's Youth Center. Here's a cute project we did, Veggie Vehicle Derby:
All of the training was great and we ended on a high note with a dinner at a local restaurant. Still frames won't do this restaurant justice so have a little looksie:
You take whatever meat and veggies you want back to your table and grill it yourself. It is a really fun experience. I only made it through one of these octopuses, it is just too chewy for my tastes.

I guess that raps up the week. Next weekend Chris' mom and one of her friends are coming for a visit. I am so excited to get our first guests! Anyone else who wants a free place to stay in Okinawa, email us to make your reservations.

10 comments:

Unknown said...

The boat looks fun. I hope Rana soon gets the hang of it. It was lovely to see Oscar. The restaurant looks great - a place that I would love to go. How would you know what to have and where to stop. Enjoy your visitors. How exciting.

Caitlin at Healthy Tipping Point said...

thanks for the sweet comment on my blog :)

Triple Threat Ladies said...

I love the zucchini car! That is awesome!I wonder if it could be roasted like that? Hmm...it would definitely make dinner a little more exciting! : )

Mary and Sean said...

It does look like a fantastic weekend. I love those days that just seem to go on and on forever in a good way. What fun to get some training and take a little trip... I'm thinking I might have to try that Yakiniku viking place on the 58 after I saw your squid stick!

Tania :) said...

Your dog is adorable! :) I don't think my dog would be ok with that at all! :)

healthy ashley said...

Everything you guys do looks so fun! The restaurant looks cool too. The octopus! Even if I ate meat I don't think I could do an octopus!

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