- ☆ finding myself, ☆ friends/family, ☆ i heart travel, ☆ i heart washington, ☆ life, ☆ photos, ☆ wandering
Little known beautiful places: Johns River – Westport, WA
This isn’t in the photos, but it’s foggy and cold this morning in western Washington. It’s the weirdest summer I’ve ever experienced — foggy, frigid mornings, cool days, and then freezing nights! It’s not very pleasant for a desert creature like myself, but it’s quite nice to sit inside and write in my blog a least. I have to say, it sure is weird, though. It’s August and I wear a sweater or sweatshirt most of the time and then I’m still cold! ^^; There are a few sunny days here and there, though. I get out on those days, into the wilderness and bright blue beyond. Sometimes, I just…
- ☆ being a dork, ☆ fail!, ☆ finding myself, ☆ friends/family, ☆ i heart travel, ☆ i heart washington, ☆ life, ☆ photos
Fossil Hunting at Lincoln Creek
Recently, I’ve found myself thinking more often than not about the past – mistakes I’ve made, where I could have done better, things like that. I think that’s a symptom of unhappiness, really, so yeah… I’m putting a stop to that. It’s a hard and imperfect stop, but I’m not willing to continue to think about things that I can’t change. Instead, I am going to look forward — to my next step and how to make it count! That’s how I’ve been trending, anyway, I hope you can tell! I guess that makes it funny that I roped people into going fossil-hunting with me! Get it? THE PAST. But, I…
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My 3 favorite books about Japan
Being back in a cold and rainy climate reminds me of Tokyo. No, seriously. Washington has four seasons, just like Tokyo did, and just like Hawaii didn’t. I suppose that’s what has been making me feel really nostalgic these days. I’m in a place with the weather of Japan, but way less awesome. I have seriously owned around seventeen kajillion books about Japan in my lifetime, and I’ve given away, donated, or sold back almost the same amount. Some of them I bought, some of them were given to me, and I even found one or two. But the thing is that I have moved so many times that the…
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We Visited a Masonic Cemetary
You read that right. Joanne and I visited a Masonic Cemetary. Alone. It was one of the most calming experiences of my life. We were kind of invited, by the town, and when we arrived, we were definitely welcomed by the residents. This all started when, in the brochure listing the “town attractions” that we received in St. Helens, were two cemeteries. The addresses as well as short descriptions were listed, as well as a short missive asking us to please be respectful and not make loud noises. It sounded really creepy and really interesting, so both of us jumped at the chance to drive out there right before sunset.…
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A Tour of the Twilight Filming Locations
I’ve been to Forks and La Push, where the Twilight book series takes place, but I’ve never been to the actual filming locations from the movies! That’s because while the director wanted to film in Forks, when he came to scout the town he realized there was just not enough infrastructure to support an entire film crew– there were literally not enough places to house and feed all of the people who would be working on the movie, and there was no other large town within driving distance! (Yeah, Forks is really far out there) Enter Halloweento— I mean, St. Helens, Oregon! (1,827 geeks have read this)
- ☆ being a dork, ☆ friends/family, ☆ i heart travel, ☆ i heart washington, ☆ life, ☆ movies, ☆ photos
Visiting Halloweentown!
Sometime over the summer, I saw a video on Facebook about a little town in Oregon where it’s Halloween all year long. Halloween? OMG YES, I LOVE HALLOWEEN! You’re not the only one dressing up for once, so it really doesn’t feel awkward to let your geek shine! Especially now that “sexy” halloween costumes aren’t the only “cool” option. I mean, as if nerdy costumes were ever less than cool, but I digress. History has been hard to us nerds. Anyways! So, I saw a video for this Halloweentown that made it look really, really cool, and I thought, hey, I have to go! Guess what? I did! 😀 Here is…
- ☆ anime/manga, ☆ being a dork, ☆ events/shows/concerts, ☆ fail!, ☆ i heart japan, ☆ i heart travel, ☆ life, ☆ photos, ☆ videos
Living Tall in Japan, part 54
☆ To see all of the parts in this series, click here ☆ I bet you thought I’d forgotten about this series, didn’t you! I never forget– sometimes I just lose steam, but I’m feeling good now, so lots of writing is coming! So, it was basically my 25th birthday. What did I write in my journal? It’s my 25th birthday in 3 days! :O So old!! (1,452 geeks have read this)
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How to Fly Overseas With Your Cats
Cats. Cats are the best, and I can’t seem to settle down in any one place for too long, so my cats (possibly to their dismay) have had to move around with my silly butt. I don’t own a boat that can cross the Pacific Ocean, so that means taking them on a plane. BUT! While it’s no fun for anyone, it’s not really as hard as you think! Really really! (454 geeks have read this)
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10 reasons you should live abroad in Japan
It’s no secret that I love Japan. I mean, I really, really love Japan. I felt more at home in Tokyo than I ever have anywhere else, and I think about going back all. the. time. I’m even thinking about it right now. You’re probably reading this right now because, at the very least, some tiny part of you is curious about whether you should do it. It might be the tiiiiiiiniest little part, but I’m sure it’s there. Maybe you don’t want to admit it because it seems pretty impossible, and yeah, I will admit that if you have a job that you don’t want to leave, strong family ties, kids,…
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Four new convenience store drinks I tried in Tokyo
1000 bottles of pop on the wall, 1000 bottles of pop! That’s basically Tokyo in a nutshell, at least in my 9 years of experience (cue Horio here). Japan is all about the newest fad, the latest little libation, and especially gentei nomimono (limited-edition drink). Well, gentei anything, really, but especially those liquids. I don’t think that these drinks are necessarily limited-edition, but none of them existed when I was last in Japan a few years ago. And I may have left some aspects of Japanese culture behind, but apparently not this one. I was really excited to give them a try! (1,257 geeks have read this)