It’s that glorious time again… Things I Love Thursday!

This week is sad and rainy here in Tokushima.　I actually like the rain quite a bit. It’s one of my favorite times to curl up in bed with a book and a mug of tea, or maybe a good time to watch a favorite movie. But biking around in the rain is a different story. At school this morning I had to sit and fan myself in order to dry the big wet patches off of my pants. (very cold!) But cold does not keep me from having TiLT! This week, I love:

• Bento Lunches! Oh bento, you are so mysterious. When I am eating, I am constantly wondering, “is this an animal or a vegetable?” Never before have I played 20 Questions with my food. O-Bento, you nourish me and fill me with the major food groups of Japan: crunchy, squishy, stringy, noodly, and fried. Your variety of flavors fill my taste-buds with joy. If only I knew what you were, so that I could replicate you at home for dinner. Thank you, O-Bento.
• Good Deeds! Today, I am anticipating my first visit to the Tokushima animal shelter, Tokushima Heart. Tokushima Heart is run out of the home of a woman who moved here (I believe she is originally from North America) and started picking up strays and trying to rehabilitate them and find homes for them. Now her house is full of animals, but there are so many of them that she can’t always give them the human interaction that they need to stay happy and healthy. Animals get depressed if they are not stimulated enough, so volunteers come and play with the animals and take them for walks and so forth. Hooray for good deeds!
• Teaching! I do not actually love teaching, but I must tell myself that I do. Why? I suppose it is in the pursuit of positive thinking. So far, teaching has been many things: stressful, enjoyable, overwhelming, and fun. And it has only been two days, so I absolutely don’t know the half of it. However, it has not been bad. So I am saying “I love it!” to remind myself that what I am doing is indeed loved by many people. Teaching is enjoyable. It’s a positive thing to do, I can definitely love that fact. 
• My comforter. Have I mentioned that it’s raining? Constantly? On my bed is a big old poofy quilt-type blanket. It’s so very very comfortable, the absolute perfect thing for when I curl up with my book. Mmm!
• Honorable mentions: weekend plans with friends; letters in the mail; clear see-through umbrellas; third year students laughing at my goofiness; finding magnets just when you need them; chalk; corn potage (whatever that is, it’s tasty); my supervisor’s cute ponytail; a sweater that’s not too warm; photos of my family; thinking about friends; yokan.

I miss folks a lot! The biggest thing I wish I had was someone to talk to, who would say things like “let’s have a nice conversation” or “it’s not so bad, have a hug” or “let’s go play in the park!”. Here, between JETs and other JETs, or between JETs and JTEs (Japanese Teachers of English) we talk primarily about what we are doing, or what we have done. We don’t talk (yet) about what we think, what we have read, what we’re contemplating. That’s a little frustrating, because I’m so used to the conversation styles that I have with my dad, or with my friends.

Love things this week! Enjoy this week, wherever you are.