Adjusting

I've been kind of homesick this week. I've been dreaming of my "used to be" puppies and random people from back home. It makes living so far away hard, it's not like I can just hop in the car and be back home. But I have been trying to keep myself busy so I cannot dwell on it. In the class Alan and I took last week, the instructor told us that there are four stages of adjustment to a different culture. First the excitement stage where everything seems new and you look upon everything with bright eyes. The second stage is a stage of frustration when you feel you cannot do it, the life is hard and it will be impossible to adjust. The third is gradual adjustment when things begin to feel better and the fourth is complete adjustment.

Today Alan and I decided we wanted to get back into running again. I don't know if any of you have used the Nike Plus sensor, but it is a really cool thing! We bought Alan some shoes and a sensor back in the states and he loves it. You have to buy the special shoes for the sensor but there are several models. The sensor fits down inside the sole of the shoe. It will track how fast you go, how far you go, turn your workouts into a log for referencing, and will even play music to pump you up when you need an extra boost. We bought shoes for me today so Alan and I can run together and both have this tool.

Tonight we went running and it felt great to be out exercising again. After being on leave for a month and not working out in a while you really get to missing it. I think it has helped a little with the adjustment, feeling like life is back to normal. Now if only I can get a job I think things will be much better. I am going to apply to substitute but also look into teaching English to the local Japanese. I have heard this is quite a successful career here.

Also this week Alan and I plan to attend a meeting that brings together Japanese and Americans who are looking to practice their language skills and maybe find a friend. Also, we hope to attend the Conversational Japanese class offered (for free) on base.