I fried CHICKEN tonight! I'm getting good at this cooking thing. I'm only working on the meats right now so I had a simple chicken noodle soup to go with it. I know that doesn't sound like it goes together but it was actually kinda good. I'm surprising myself on how much I know how to fix from just watching. My mom would be totally amazed. I came home at lunch and took out some chicken wings. When I got home after work I made a little flour batter with salt, pepper, and some garlic (which tastes great believe it or not) and mixed that in. Then I washed off the chicken and salt and peppered it and put it in the flour stuff. Then I fried them up. It was very good! I haven't decided what to make tonight, but I do want rice. Thank goodness for the rice maker. That in itself was a blessing sent from above!!! If I had to figure out how to make RICE...wow, could my mom tell some stories about me boiling water!!!

Communication problems and all, today my Superintendant gave me two large pears (nashi)! They are like large grapefruit size and kinda hard but I cut one of them up for dessert tonight and it was quite good. I think the other one will be better once it softens up a bit. My supervisor Watanabe-san was not at the office today. The other three guys, The superintendant, vice superintendant, and some other guy I don't know his position were the only ones there. I got a lot of work done.

I've been cleaning out some old Jet stuff and throwing anything away that doesn' t have a match or that is worn out looking. There is a lot of mess that looks like it has been in there for a long time and I can't take all that. I know more about North Carolina now than I ever did. I have this one book that basically says, North Carolina was originally Carolina (latin for Charles--some explorer) then they split that up into North and South Carolina and Georgia. And that NC was the 12th of the 13 original colonies to sign. I was very surprised. I guess growing up in CT we didn't get this basic stuff about other colonies, just our own. Its wild what I'm learning so I can teach these students.

I've been staying up late to call home and its good for me. I miss talking to my folks everyday and still can't some how reach my best friend but I'm sure she is okay. I talked to Tracey's son Brandon today. He was at work with her. "Hi Bibi" That's what he calls me, can't say Eboni. Gosh, I'm not going to get sad, but I do miss everyone.

Wednesday night they have a "fire-flower" display (fireworks) at the Elementary school up the road. I'm going to go and try to take pictures but I don't think I'm going to be doing the developing thing much longer. Its just too expensive, and plus if I get a digital camera it will be much easier to show pictures to everyone. So Friday is a half day for me and I think I'll go out looking then. I'm supposed to be climbing Mt. Fuji with a group of people from my prefecture Saturday and would love to take good pictures of that so...we'll see.

"Jah, Matta! (see you later)"