I was rooting around on the website for Takasago, the town where my high school is located. I translated the hiking page and got this. Online web translation has a long way to go. My favorite hike is the one at the bottom – “Handle forcing Fragrance of home”.

Just got off the phone with my Master Teacher in Japan, Mr. Hayashi, and also my predecessor who is there, Andrew. The conversation went pretty well, and it was exciting to talk to people so far away. It was amazing – there was no delay on the phone conversation. I used to talk to my friend Vishnu in India, and the delay was pretty distracting.

Anyway, they were taking lunch and decided to give me a call. It’s looking more and more like I’ll take over Andrew’s apartment in Futami, but it’s not for sure yet. That means a pretty big apartment, and hopefully the rent is reasonable.

Every time something like this happens, the excitement starts building. I probably won’t be able to sleep tonight 🙂

My dad mentioned that he was thinking about a poker blog to keep the rotation going for his poker group. I’m going to maybe fool around with that the next couple of days while the family is up north. They are staying at the Pt. Arena lighthouse, and doing some winetasting and fun stuff in the area. I’ve got some great beers to drink here, and I’m working on negotiations with my predecessor in Japan to buy some of his furniture.

I’ve been running around with Sara over the weekend, so I haven’t really updated the site. The weekend was great – we did everything we set out to do, and as always, I took lots of pictures.

I drove down to pick up Sara, and we went from there to the beach at the end of Sloat St. in San Francisco. I figured that since Sara was landlocked in Colorado, it was a good idea to hit the beach as soon as possible. The weather was cloudy, but it was good to see the ocean. Sara even found three intact sand dollars. From there, we went to the Exploratorium to do the Tactile Dome. We ran around inside, going quickly from exhibit to exhibit. There’s always a lot to see and do, it’s just conjuring up the patience to check everything out. After the Tactile Dome, we went down to Pier 39 for some tourist watching. We ate at Bubba Gump’s and then headed back to Glen Ellen.

The next day was the Fourth of July, so we went down to the plaza to watch the parade, which clocked in at two and half hours (!). I’m not saying I was miserable and bored, but I will say that Sara and I ended up at Murphy’s Irish Pub. We got there right before the parade ended, and when it did, it was like a mob scene of people going for beers. I was served the quickest Guinness I’ve ever had, which unfortunately, isn’t a good thing with Guinness. Oh well.

After the parade, we went back to Glen Ellen for more beer and a twenty minute nap. Then on to Mike and Mary Benziger’s place for some relaxation out on their patio, more beer, and some great food. Matt and Suzie Atkinson were there, and we had a good time visiting with everyone. Buck had a superpowered Spud Gun, pictured above. I have had experience with the hairspray version, which is a little more dangerous, but this one was built with a compressed air tank. The potato (red potatoes are best) fired from the deck of the Benziger’s house clear over the crush pad down at the winery. Brody and Dale ran down to the winery to serve as targets, but the accuracy was not quite good enough to hit them.

Afterwards, we met up with Dave and Britta and their kids, and we all went to fireworks ground zero. The Sonoma fireworks are held out in a big field off the plaza, and we set up right behind the yellow tape. I think firefighters would call that the “minimum safe distance”. The display this year was pretty good – lots of great shapes and colors. I snapped a few pics, we had some wine and snacks, and then joined the traffic parade home. The next day Sara and I were off to Goat Rock State Beach on the coast, and then south to Point Reyes. We ate Poor Boys on the beach, and got some serious beach time. That night we came back and rented Gangs of New York, and finally hit the rack.

Yesterday gave us a chance to visit Victor, Lisa, and Alexander. Alexander is pretty big for such a young guy, and we played with him and talked with Victor and Lisa for a couple of hours. Victor and Lisa looked great, and you can tell they are proud parents. Afterwards we headed back to Glen Ellen and my folks treated us to steaks from Harris Ranch. It was a great meal, with portabello mushrooms, Caesar salad, and good wine.

Today I drove Sara to the airport. We stopped at the fruit stand and Artisan Bakers for some souvenirs, and then I dropped her off at SFO for her flight back. Now we’re gearing up the house for Nancy, Lynn, Pam and Rob.

This morning I’m heading into South San Francisco to pick up Sara at the airport. From there we’re going to run around in the city and do some touristy-type things. Let’s hope my old Toyota Cressida still has the guts to get me there and back.

Today my dad and I went to Mrs. Grossman’s Sticker Company, Lagunitas Brewery, and Costco in Petaluma. The sticker trip was kind of a bust – I was hoping to find stickers to pass out to my students in Japan, but everything was pretty high priced, and there wasn’t anything that jumped out as uniquely American.

After the sticker place we went over to Lagunitas Brewery to check out the brewery. My last visit to a brewery was New Belgium Brewery in Fort Collins, CO while I was visiting Sara. The contrast between the two breweries was amazing. While New Belgium had an extensive tour, a really nice bar area, and a compliementary flight of beer tastes, Lagunitas was totally different.

We walked in and the tour guide took me and my dad (we were the only ones) across to the brewery, where we were lead up to a tasting bar overlooking the bottling line. She poured us a couple of beers (full glasses) and one for herself (!). We sat around talking about the beers and the bottling line, and then she starting pouring more. No little tasters here, we’re taking 12 ounces a pop. Did I mention that it was free?

We walked the bottling line, and even got a couple of low-fill bottles that quality control had kicked off the line. All in all it was a great tour. The tour guide obviously loved her job, and said that is a great place to work. Even the cellar workers were walking around drinking beers. She said that the owner is a “stoner”. Sounds like a great job to me.

Costco was overwhelming as usual – we got out of there for $350. Ouch! The food selection was pretty good, though, and I was able to pick up a game I’ve had my eye on few almost a year. It was down to $25. We picked up a case of Lagunitas IPA though, so the tour paid off right away for the brewery.

This evening we went out to the Sonoma Plaza, for the Farmer’s Market. I used to attend this when I was living in Sonoma… it’s a great little event. They’ve got booths set up all around the plaza, and a ton of people come down to do some shopping and eat junk food. This time I ate jambalaya, but my only complaint is the lack of shrimp. It was still good, though, and spicier than I would have expected.

My folks and I sat down with the Phelan family (part of it, anyway), and had a good time just watching all the chaos around us. The weather was perfect, and it was a great evening.

Betty Jane and Tyler came over last night, and we celebrated Betty Jane’s birthday a bit prematurely. Tyler and I played some ping pong, and I sent him home with a CD of tunes – Nine Inch Nails, Queen, and Soundgarden. Tyler had a DVD that his dad had created from his high school talent show. He was playing guitar and singing “Glycerine” by Bush. He also participated in the school choir singing a couple of tunes. It was great to see him rocking out.

Now I’m scraping together photos to take with me in a small photo album. I thought it would be fun to show that off when I’m in Japan. It’s hard to narrow it down – so far I have around 140 pictures. That’s way too many, but there’s just so much good stuff.

I went up to the new Ridge Trail in Jack London State Park today. I hiked to the park since I was too cheap to pay for parking, and then hiked up to the Ridge trailhead, and from there it was a 3-4 mile loop on a brand new trail. The trip was great – I hadn’t hiked in a little while, and I got a few good pictures.

All together it was about a 12 mile hike. I even ran into Mr. Knight – my 9th grade science teacher. He hasn’t changed a bit. I’m a little sore after the hike since it’s been a while and there was so much uphill, but I’ll work it out with some stretches. Tonight Betty Jane is coming over to help us finish up some carnitas. I’ve been on a Mexican food kick since I heard there is only one decent Mexican food restaurant in Japan, and it’s all the way over in Tokyo. That’s pretty far to go for a taco. I’m smuggling in some mexican hot sauce with me. Might be tasty on sashimi.

It’s been a busy couple of days. Victor and Rico came over to play some ping pong and poker, drink some beers, and have dinner. It was great to see them, and we had a good time hitting the ball around, despite the heat. My dad jumped in so we had four poker players, and taught us quite a few new games. Note the look of confusion on our faces while we try to comprehend “Firehouse Burn Two”.

The next day, my dad and I jumped in the van and drove south to attend my Pre-Departure Orientation in Los Angeles. Rather than stay in a hotel, my parents have some old friends that live in Torrance, about 30 minutes away from where the orientation was being held.

We drove down with the air conditioning going the whole way – about seven straight hours. Just before we got into Torrance, the air conditioner gave up the ghost, so we were driving through the last bit of traffic with the windows down, sucking down that premium Los Angeles smog. We stayed at our friend’s the Ruggiero’s, and we took Gary out for some great Mexican food in Torrance. Afterwards, we drove down to the Redondo Pier. It was only a short drive from Torrance, and it was very nice. There were a ton of restaurants along the pier, and it seemed that several catered almost exclusively to Asian customers. While we were in line to buy coffee, a young kid emptied his stomach on the pavement, and was having a rough go of it getting his system clear. It really capped off a great day in L.A. I forgot my camera in the car – and missed a perfect Kodak moment. 🙁

The next day I drove down to the New Otani hotel in Little Tokyo to attend my orientation. Overall, it went pretty well, but by the end of it, I was ready to get out of my suit and hit the road. We drove through the valley that night through 100+ degrees of heat with all the windows down, and we survived nicely. When we arrived home a little after midnight, it turned out that my mom had gotten a phone call from my “Master Teacher” in Japan. It turns out that they got my information, and I finally know where I’m going. My mom was pretty excited to talk to someone from Japan, and it really helped bring the whole thing home (literally). You can read more about my orientation here, and more about where I’m going to be living and teaching here. Just about a month away, and it’s all starting to seem more real. I’m in touch with my predecessor via e-mail, and things are starting to roll.

I sit here digesting an excellent meal from Gramma’s Pizza in Sonoma. My mom had a coupon for a free meal on her birthday, so my dad and I joined her, and we had a great dining experience. We had ordered a bottle of wine with dinner, and when we finished it, we were switching to the water on the table. The waiter had an open bottle of the wine that we had just finished, and just kept on pouring. Best of all, it wasn’t on the bill. After dessert, he suggested some port to help digest a big meal. He assured us that it was a critical step in a successful digestive experience. My dad and I took him up on a glass of port each. Our waiter opened a new bottle, poured two heavy glasses of port, and that didn’t show up on the bill either! The waiter was full of energy, and was working hard to make sure that everything was perfect. It was refreshing to get great service.

In the morning George Degliantoni (my woodshop teacher from junior high) came over and all together we split two cords of wood. We worked until 1 p.m., just when it hit around 95 degrees. After that we changed the cables that run from the spark plugs to the alternator on my dad’s car, and then relaxed a little bit before going out to dinner. Now I type this out pleasantly full, and my port-assisted digestion is going along just fine.

Today went pretty well – ran lots of errands with my dad and we were able to take my grandma out to lunch at Denny’s. We did a little grocery shopping, and even did some tune-up work on the car. I was planning on driving my Honda to L.A., but since I sold it, we’re going to take one of my parents’ cars. You should have seen me out in the garage pulling out spark plugs. I even put some new ones back in.

The car is sold! I took part of the payment in exchange for the car, and when I get the title, I’ll sign it over to him and get the rest of the payment. It’s hard to describe the feeling of someone else driving away your car. This one was special, since it was the first (and only) new car I have purchased. I see this as a good way to prepare for living in Japan. I’m going to have to give up a lot of creature comforts, and learn to adapt in unusual situations. So “farewell” to a great car, and “hello” public transportation.

The smog test is over, and my car passed with an “A”. Tonight at 7 o’clock the guy is coming over to do the final stuff to sell the car.

Sara mentioned going to the Tactile Dome at the Exploratorium in San Francisco the day she flies in. I’m pretty excited about going – it’s been a long time since I’ve been and it should be a lot of fun.

Turns out the car guy was serious, and I think I might be selling my car this week. I’m taking the car in to a mechanic to make sure that everything is sound, and if that goes well, I’ll be paying off the car, getting the title, and transferring ownership. I’ll be sad to see the car go, but in a way, it’s a reminder of a different lifestyle and personal philosophy that I have left behind.

Harry Potter 5 was excellent. I finished it this morning, and I’m ready to read the next one. The book was pretty long, and I’m not sure that it was necessary for it to be that long, but I’m not reading it because it’s necessary. I read it for the escapism and to find out how things shake out. Good stuff! Teeth are still a little sore, but I think the pain might be starting to fade.