Well, I know I havn't written for quite a long time but that's because I was on vacation back in Michigan for 2 weeks. Boy, am I tired! I guess I wasn't too busy. I mean, I just shopped for the first couple days, loading up on clothes, shoes, souvaniers, etc. I'll do my best to condense my 2 weeks into a couple paragraphs so as not to bore you too much. If you want more details about a specific event, feel free to comment or email.

I got to visit my brother and sister-in-law in Chicago for a couple days and that was fun. I got to eat lots of pizza and burritoes (somethings I'd really been craving) and they were good. We didn't do the normal Chicago tourist things like go to museums or 'The Miracle Mile'. Instead we went off the beaten path and visited the 'Oops...I did it again' exhibition. It was...interesting. To be honest, I think that I am not really artistic enough to understand the depth of some of the exhibits. But some of them were pretty good. Over all, a very good time.

Then on to Indianappolis to meet my friend, Sarah. Unfortunatly, I had too good of a time in Chicago the night before so I was not in party mood. Sorry Sarah. It was a good time though. Had some good pizza. Good conversation.

Then the final leg of my journey took me to East Lansing. It was a Japan Adventure reunion. More good fun and catching up.

By the time I got back to Bay City I was ready for a rest but unfortunatly, when you've not been around for a year or so, there is too much to do and too many people to see. So, on Thursday I went to the Bay City Hash. It was fun but not as fun as I remember. In the old days, I was a regular. Every week I was there, on the off-days I was usually hanging out with the Hashers. Well, most of those old hashers have since drifted off. So, on Thursday, it was a good time but I really felt a bit awkward.

Friday-one of my best friend, Ingrid's, wedding. I was really looking forward to the wedding. It's the first wedding of one of my friends that I've had the chance to attend so it was exciting. Well, it was a beautiful ceremony. Ingrid's father is the pastor at the church so it was extra emotional. Nate, the groom, is a graphic designer and he pretty much did the decorating and designed the bulletins and everything and it was unbelievable. The reception was another reunion. Although I didn't get to talk to Ingrid much, there were so many people who I havn't seen for years...some since high school. It was great to catch up. More catching up on Saturday.

Sunday-went to a baseball game with my mother and father. The Tigers lost...of course. But, exciting none the less.

Monday-the ride back to Japan. It was a long and annoying flight. First, I pretty much got strip searched when I got to the airport. Then they unpacked all of my carry-ons. Now, I have no problem with this except for the fact that the woman who was unpacking my backpack was moving like a snail. she'd take out a book, browse through, sloooooly set it down and move on to the next. During all this, they called my name over the loud speaker for a last call before my flight. Well, I made my flight ok. The flight from Detroit to Osaka was not too bad but i had the feeling that I was the only person on the plane who wasn't part of a big group. Everyone around me knew eachother and new people kept coming from the front of the plane to chat. There were little parties all over the place, people drinking, eating, talking. But, i suppose the important thing is that I made it. Here I am safe and sound...too bad I have to go to work.