Wednesday, March 04, 2009

A Glimpse into My Befuddled Brain....

* Will they have Siapao in Japan? It IS in the same hemisphere as the Philippines?

*YIKES - how will I feed my family in Japan?

*Why are all the websites I visit in Japanese?

*Should I take my photos that need to be scrapbooked? OMW, if I leave them I'm admitting I won't work on them for 3 years...if I take them will the humidity get to them?

*If I get Rosetta Stone real quick will we be able to learn key phrases? You know, "Where can I order wheat berries?" "Can I buy preservative free food somewhere on this island?"

*Will our house sell?

*Should I get Skype or Vonage?

*Oh my word - are the potties like the ones in the Philippines??????

*I wonder how hard it would be to get passports to other countries...I mean I know folks in China, Taiwan, Philippines....OK reality check...just because it looks like this place is much smaller than TX they are DIFFERENT COUNTRIES!

*Will the new chapel staff like us?

*Should we take the Christmas Tree? Nah....

*Where are we going to store our things?

*What about our dear dog?

*Am I going to find nice PWOC and homeschool friends in Japan?

*Why are Arielle and Nolan going through their clothes?

*Do they have a maternity clinic on base? NO - I'M NOT PREGNANT - but I surely don't want to have a child in a rice paddy either.

*ARGH - I need to go through everything in this house....but first we need to do school, play with friends, go camping and graduate Jamin.....

*I really should work on a few PWOC jobs tonight and stay away from google...not turning up a lot of helpful stuff anyway. ::snort::

*Where can I get brochures and such from Japan.....

*I wonder if homeschool share has a lapbook on Japan.

Choosing Joy!
©2009 D.R.G.

26 comments:

kmjrose said...

Take the dog!
Karen

Just me~Bobbie Jo said...

Girl take a deep breath! :) It will all get done-just make a list and go from there.

Paula said...

Hi De'Etta,
You probably could locate wheat somewhere in Japan but it would be expensive--it is difficult to grow there and I believe a lot of what they use is imported (from the US). I'm pretty sure my mom usually ships wheat as part of her household goods shipment when they go to a new post. I'm not sure how it works or if military rules would be the same as State department, but in other ways they do seem to be similar. Of course it does take up a lot of weight...

Hm, I've never seen a Phillipine potty--if they squat over a hole, then yes you may encounter a few like that--but not often. The scariest toilet I encountered in Japan was the one that tried to talk to me when I sat down and had multiple buttons that could spray water etc.!

Anonymous said...

Oh De'Etta, It's becoming clearer why the Lord moved you to pull back on outside obligations. He has much for you to prepare.

From what others are writing, take little, enjoy much. Your family is the nucleus,the beating heart of your home, the big rocks. After them, what becomes the little rocks? Is this move an opportunity to examine if you own your possessions or your possessions own you?

When you go camping, is it nice to not have excess stuff? To be free to just enjoy? Is Japan a three year camping adventure?

Hmm...my appreciation for minimalism is blaring through...I'll stop here. :)

Debbie said...

De'Etta, no advice except I have to 2nd Darshia's thoughts. We have gone on extended (not three years!) camping trips and it was nice to not have so much. This might be a great time of refreshment for you without all the "extras" of too much stuff.

Regarding your dear dog...I was telling Brian about your thoughts and he is ready to take a road trip and bring your doggie for an extended stay at our place. You just say the word.

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

LOL Bobbie Jo - I LOVE researching and that is what all the questions are about...they become the basis of research. I actually have a 6 page moving checklist that I use each PCS....so the list is well in place. I'll need to add the overseas stuff when Mike is able to breathe so I know what needs to be added....at this point he's fairly focused on catching up from being home and the ORI. LOL

Darshia - you are right that leaving stuff will be fun...the sorting will be time consuming. We get rid of a TON of stuff each move. This time I find myself thinking over items saying "Do I like this enough to take it to Japan? Do I like it enough to store it for 3 years?" ::snort::

Making sure I have wheat berries so I can bake bread with fresh ground flour is a concern....and I don't know that I can take 3 years of wheat with me...need books for school too. ::snort:: BUT Mike pointed out we have sealed buckets of grain in the garage we can probably ship with our household goods. After that I guess we'll GRIND RICE? ::snort::

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Debbie (and Darshia) I agree. It's always sort of fun to live in the TLF and realize how little you REALLY need. LOL

Brian would drive from NY to TX to pick up our dog? Wow. We're still not really talking that issue....soon.

Anonymous said...

I know at least some of your staff will love you, I see you getting along so well w/ our friends over there!

Anonymous said...

I'm praying for the Lord to grant you peace and clarity alongside your excitement for this move.

Cynthia said...

I'm not even the one moving and I've been wondering about some of these things for you! Do they give you any sort of checklist or anything for a move out of country?

Anonymous said...

Sis: Our dear, dear, daughter.... just take a deep breath and then take one step at a time. Wish we were there to help.

Siapao: Always wondered why you liked that so much. I bet the Filipino community somewhere around the base will have this. ENJOY!!

Feeding your family may be easier than you think. Many places in Asia have open markets and stuff comes direct from the farms etc. Anyway, no doubt the base has a good market. Think you will be able to utilize the regular Japanise food and markets to get stuff that won't hurt Alexander etc.

Is Japan real humid? If it is your foto's should be OK for just the few years you will be there but who knows. Keep negatives and/or everything on disk so you can replace if needed.

Bet you all learn alot of Japanese just because you are you. etc.

Praying your house, Nathaniel/ Heather's, and Antie Marge's all sell. GOODNESS SOME OF THE MOST SPECIAL PEOPLE IN OUR LIVES ARE ALL GOING TO ASIA! Maybe we need to get on our knees and pray. :):) Just found out the church in Japan is still looking for someone to teach English etc. Well, Dad still has two total knee replacements to have and the process of getting well. Not for us at this time but sure gives the heart a tug.

Try as soon as possible for passport endorsements to other places. Of course just short periods of time are somewhat easy to get.

You will all be liked as much as anywhere else. That is the kind of people you are. You adjust and find ways to make friends etc.

Christmas: We did all things.. taking from the States... getting what can be found therre... and coming up with new ways to have a tree. Will never forget the tree we had the 1st year you and Will were not with us.... a native swamp tree wound with red tissue paper cut to look like pine branches. It was a lot of work but looked great and oh so different. Nathaniel and us enjoyed it. You will find interesting ways to have a tree. Even take a plastic one from here..
ALSO, you will be surprised how much you can find to buy over there.

Store as much as our large atic can hold. Even a storage place here we and your kids in Eugene could watch over etc. There are even places to store a trailer etc.

Anyway, know we are praying for you and Mike as both of you prepare for this move. It won't be as hard as it might seem. Just one step at a time. BET you will be able to buy most clothing you need over there if you can't find warm enough stuff here etc.

Also, it is always fun to go thru stuff when you get back to the States etc. You might need to get one of those things that allows you to seal airtight anything you want. It also shrinks some stuff done a lot. However, most clothing you don't really want to store unless you are sure someone will fit it when you get back. :):)

Man, wish we could be in Texas to help out. love/prayers Dad/Mom T.

Herd Momma said...

Breath. Organize your rocks, like mentioned above. Rice Bread....hhhmmmm.....
If I can help, let me know.
Mary, who has lived in Wasama(?) and just got back from Japan last Spring can be a source.

Renee said...

You'll have a commissary; we had one in tiny Garmisch. I would imagine you would just switch the types of fresh produce you since fresh is not very good at overseas commissaries.

We had RS Korean. It was miserable because the alphabet is different. I am a visual person so it didn't work for me. We got by with very little Hangul but then Seoul is a huge city.

I would contact a realtor NOW. It is definitely the time of year that folks pcsing to the area are going to start looking. I came househunting in AL in APril.

I would not rush to get Vonage or Skype. You very well may be able to get a great deal on international calls. I don't remember what we had in Korea but the deal in Germany was super. And if your internet connection is slow, it might not work well. Our internet in Korea was slow but granted that was 02-04.

In Korea we were mostly able to find 'western' toilets; esp if we opted to wait for the handicap stall.

<<<*I wonder how hard it would be to get passports to other countries...I mean I know folks in China, Taiwan, Philippines....>>>>>

You'll be able to use your military passports for traveling since it's in connection with your military assignment. There tend to be rules/restrictions/permission needed to travel outside the assigned country. We were given permission to Thailand only because we were not going to Phuket. Lots of folks we know went to China. Heck sometimes there are even curfews in country; one December in Korea all military (and family members) had to be on post or in their home by 9pm (or maybe it was 8pm); I remember we had to leave an offpost party at a church in the city early to get home.
We didn't take the christmas tree to Korea. There is very limited storage. We had one large storage closet on our patio; it was just big enough for kids' bikes. And the Scouts in Korea (maybe Japan does the same) sold fresh trees which were quite nice.

When you say store your things, I'm guessing you mean the stuff you are not taking to Japan. You won't store it; the AF will.... It will be stored somewhere nearby your current assignment and when you pcs back to the States you'll request it be released and delivered to your next assignment.

Unless Japan is different than Korea or if housing doesn't permit pets (some in Korea didn't permit pets) you can take your dog. If you search for the AF Vet services you should find links about what's necessary for that country... the biggest problem is flying in the summer. there are restrictions about the temp on the tarmac and so many airlines don't permit pets in the summer months :(

How about contacting a travel agent in town for brochures about Japan? Or contacting the newcomers office at Misawa?

Renee said...

thought of something else... there may be restrictions on shipping food in your HHG. Unlike State Dept, you'll not get an extra allotment for 'consumable' items esp if there is a commissary in the area.

Herding Grasshoppers said...

Oh my goodness, De'Etta, I think my brain works like yours. Big stuff, little stuff, immediate stuff, and long-range stuff all tries to "download" at once!

I'm sure you're good at this and you'll do great. You seem to have a wonderfully adaptive flow-with-it attitude.

"The Lord your God is with you,
He is mighty to save
He will take great delight in you,
He will quiet you with His love,
He will rejoice over you with singing."

berrypatch said...

HSS has a "country" lapbook you can make fit any country. ;-) That's about all I could answer for you. Praying for you on this grand new adventure!

casey said...

WOW! You said it all! WE just found out we are moving this fall - a year sooner than expected.

Anonymous said...

Re: Storage of stuff...Would any of your adult children in/going to college want to use the furniture/cooking/electronic items to furnish their apts. during your Japan stay? Obviously items you aren't taking w/you.

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Great info ladies, Thanks.

CASEY - PLEASE TELL ME YOU ARE MOVING TO MISAWA!!!!

Great idea, Darshia...and Mom and Dad will store stuff too.

Renee - I know that the AF will store things....but we are ALWAYS over our limit and only make it because we haul 2-3k pounds with us....so we are having huge giveaways of things like swing sets (because our youngest will be 6 when we return and the ohters will have outgrown it), pools, canoes, trampolines....and if we are still over then we'll have to guess how much over we think we are and rent our own storage. Mike worked for North American and is good at estimating. LOL

Thanks Lisa, I'll check.

Cynthia said...

My kids use skype all the time... quick and easy to set up.. drawback is you have to be at the computer so you can't multitask as much (LOL) while talking.

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Cindy - I have a friend who purchased a Skype phone and I believe it is a cordless. I have no idea how or where...but I know she multi-tasks. LOL That IS the problem with the computer venues....

Renee said...

Another thought about food. If an item is in the Pacific Commmisary system but not in your store, it can be special ordered as long as you're willing to buy a case (which isn't hard for large families)

My kids would LOVE a trampoline but alas AL to TX is too far to drive for one......
How wonderful that you have a dh with those moving skills; it will make things easier and cheaper. I can't even imagine what the govt would charge for going 'over' on the overseas portion of a move.

Linda said...

De'Etta, my friend Pearl was in Japan for quite a while. She read your questions and said she could answer a lot of them, but could not comment on your blog for some reason. She would like for you to email her at: candles.charms at gmail dot com

DeEtta @ Courageous Joy said...

Thanks, Linda.

Renee - My first stop on landing will be to check with the commissary manager. I know HERE that they'll order items for me that aren't in the system if I agree to buy the whole case....so I'm hopeful. Mainly I want wheat berries...and veganaise....hmmm...I'm fairly certain they'll have some organics at the commissary because even at our very small commissary they are carrying more and more organic food.

all in the family said...

DeEtta,
I have been thinking about your situation. Aaron's cousin is serving with YWAM overseas. He uses Skype and LOVES it. It works very well and it is cheap. He pays for his minutes up front.

We have people in our homeschool group that do a ministry in the Middle East. There is an underground church of about 2 million in Iran. They are exploding in numbers, and they are mainly house churches. This family makes training videos for the ministry leaders there and they will be going to Cypress. I have talked to them in great detail about their move, etc. They said it is easier to sell all (they are moving with 5 kids) and buy there. I would think in your case, some suggestions would be your books, school stuff and I WOULD plan on taking your wheat. I have heard it is very expensive there. I would leave your pictures here. You could even scan your pictures and burn them to cds to take with you and they wouldn't take up that much space. One of my favorite bloggers as of late is TN FARM GIRL. She has a TON of helpful info and they are pretty self sufficent. Her Gardening expertise is terrific. She has some great book recommends too. Here is her blog: http://blog.tnfarmgirl.com/

HTH
Beth

Wild Homeschool Family said...

Oh my goodness you have so much to think about! Even my head is spinning just reading about it!