Trippin'

So Shoko and I were thinking about going on a honeymoon in early May, but we weren't sure if we could go, for two reasons. One, I was looking for a job, and if I found a job and they wanted me to start work immediately, I wouldn't be able to go. Two, Shoko wasn't sure if she could get all the days off from work or not. Well, I haven't found a job yet...things are progressing on several fronts, but nothing official yet. Also, Shoko got all the days off by saying she was going to attend her cousin's wedding. Well...we are planning on attending a wedding while we are on our honeymoon, but it's the wedding of a good friend of mine from middle/high school. He and Shoko are not related, as far as I can tell :)

So we're going on our honeymoon, but since I don't have a job, I don't really want to spend much money. Too bad we're spending a week in NYC. At least Shoko was able to get a discounted rate for the hotel through work. I definitely need to get some new shoes while I'm in New York. My loafers (that I would theoretically wear to work every day) are just about done. They've lasted me for 3 years, so that's nice. Can't say I would buy that brand of shoe again though (Gordon Rush, in case you're wondering). Maybe Bruno Magli is the way to go...

Olympic Soccer Stuff

So the drawing was held, and both the men's and women's U.S. teams have been drawn into groups with Japan. This means that I should be able to see some U.S. soccer here in Japan, which is always good. On the men's side, the group should be pretty tough, as the group is comprised of the Netherlands, Nigeria, Japan, and the U.S. I remember watching Nigeria win the gold medal in Athens in the '96 Olympics. Actually, I saw the U.S. women beat Nigeria for the gold medal as well, which was great. Here's hoping both teams do well. I'll be happy if the U.S. just gets out of its group-though I would like them to beat Japan, of course-a bit of revenge for the Gamba Osaka vs. Houston Dynamo game (which Gamba won 6-1? I think). Go USA!

So this is what it has come to...

So when I was working, most of my conversations were in Japanese. At home my wife and I usually use Japanese as well. As a result, my English skills have started slipping. And now I'm out of work, so I'm not using Japanese all that much. My Japanese skills are rapidly deteriorating, which is bad. So...right now, I can't really speak either language all that well. So I'm stupid in either language...great.

One reason I want to start writing this blog again is because I think it might just help me recover some of the language/writing skills I've lost. Though I haven't been very good at posting regularly...

This morning I went to see an archery demonstration. These guys were trying to hit targets, basically. The catch was that they were on horseback, and the horse was galloping down the track. There were three targets in a row, and due to the speed of the horses, each rider only had a few seconds to draw an arrow, notch it, aim, and shoot at the target. I had a camera with me, but it was Shoko's camera. There was too much of a lag in between when I pushed the shutter button and when the picture was actually taken. I couldn't figure out how to put it on continuous shooting mode/movie mode. Oh well. Next year I'll have to get myself a nice SLR in order to take some good shots of the action.

Soccer ramblings

Upcoming U.S. Men's soccer team friendly matches:

()=world FIFA ranking

May 28th at England (11)
June 4th at Spain (4)
June 8th vs. Argentina (1)

I admire Bob Bradley's wanting the U.S. team to play difficult opponents, but don't you think this schedule might be a bit much? I would love to see the U.S. beat England at Wembley...though if they win any of those three games I'll be a happy man.

Weddings n' such

Hey hey, guess who got married....well, we've technically been married for almost half a year now. In Japan it's common to register your marriage at the local courthouse before you actually get married. Shoko and I did that last October and planned on having a wedding in the springtime. I proposed to her on her birthday last August, and she decided that we should have the wedding ceremony on my birthday (April 5th), so that I would never forget when our anniversary was. So...that's what we did. My parents came over from the states, and some friends came up from Miyazaki (where I used to live). Everybody said they had a good time, and we had a good time, so...yeah. A good time had by all. Here's where we had the wedding, just in case you want to check it out.