The Good Kind of Tired

Let's cut to the chase today. I am tired. The kind of tired where you can't sleep because you are so tired. I'm not tired because of a a weekend full of exploring, fun activities, great food, and good company, like it usually is. I am tired because I spent approximately 20 hours surrounded by the four walls of my new classroom and the rest of the weekend hours thinking about said classroom.

Sorry I don't have my usual exciting things to share today, but this was my view all weekend.

I'm not sharing this to complain or to brag about how hard I worked, but for you to understand that my mind is somewhere besides this blog today. I honestly couldn't wait to spend the entire weekend organizing my first classroom. I am a ridiculously neat and organized person and I had this overwhelming feeling to organize the entire room and to give it a bit of feng shui. Thankfully, I accomplished just that. I now know where everything is and everything has a place. I still need to decorate, but I had to remind myself that I have to take care of more important matters first. Things needed to be clean, neat, and functional before the beautifying process can begin. I would love a beautifully decorated and themed classroom, but it's not that easy. There is no parent-teacher store here with unlimited supplies. I also don't want to pour tons of money into decorations when we are lacking in our classroom library department. I keep telling myself making things "cute" is not the number one priority. 

So this cuteness/organization happened, just to find out it doesn't actually fit full-sized pieces of paper. Okinawa dollar store fail.

This week I am trying to remind myself to take it one day at a time. I am trying to remind myself that not everything has to get done right away.  Even though my "to-do" lists just keeps growing, I am trying to take some breaks to relax. Surprisingly, I don't feel stressed. I finally learned how to deal with stressors in my life. I also enjoy being busy like this. I like working and seeing the fruits of my labor. There have been a few times where I have missed being able to stay at home and do fun projects, shop, eat at cool restaurants, and watch shows all day long, but this working thing fits me and it is what makes me happy.

So I'm tired, but it's the good tired. It is the kind of tired that comes from hard work and accomplishment. It is the tired that is self-created because all you want to do is cross things off your list. I will take the good tired. For now.

Find adventure, Single or Married

When I finally had a good internet connection today and hopped on Facebook, I saw the article, "23 Things To Do Instead of Getting Engaged Before You're 23." I decided to take a quick break from exploring temples, riding elephants, and learning to cook here in Thailand to share my thoughts on this topic.

When I saw the article's title, I thought, sure, there are tons of things to do and see at 23. As soon as I made my way past the title and down a couple paragraphs, my blood started to boil. I get the author's intent: there are other things to do with your life in your early 20's other than getting married. Ok, fair enough, not everyone gets married at 23 and that's perfectly fine. But to state that getting married young is a cop-out? I call bullshit on that one.

The author of this article makes several points, the main one being that you miss out on adventure and finding yourself if you get married before 23. She then gives a list of all the things you could be doing instead of getting married. On her list, only 2 things you can't (or shouldn't) do while married. I am pretty certain that marriage doesn't stop me from adopting a pet, doing a pinterest craft, signing up for crossfit, eating an entire jar of Nutella in one sitting, or writing a blog. I can do these things married, engaged, single, old, young, now, later; I don't think it's defined by my relationship status. Do single people think that we married people just sit at home and stare at each other?

The point of this list was to tell the young singles that you must "find yourself" before giving yourself to someone else and that you will not have these opportunities to discover yourself once you "settle down" in marriage. I don't think that you should ever stop discovering yourself, growing, adapting, learning, whether you are married or not. Marriage doesn't mean you have to stay the same person forever and never change. Just as in single life, you can learn news things, see news things, make mistakes, discover the world. Marriage does not mean "settling down" and it certainly doesn't mean giving up opportunities. Sure, there are more compromises to be made, but that doesn't mean you have to stop doing things you love or seeing the world. It just means you have someone to do those things with. Life is an adventure at any age or marital status.

Since my husband and I said "I do" in 2012 at the ripe old age of 21, I have had more fun and adventure than any other stage of life. We didn't stop hanging out with our friends or doing fun things on weekends. We didn't stop chasing our dreams or getting an education. We didn't stop traveling. We didn't stop finding new hobbies. If anything, marriage has helped me discover myself more than being single ever did and has opened up adventures that I never knew were possible.

The article also states that people who get married young do so to "hide behind their significant other instead of dealing with life's highs and lows on their own." You mean to tell me that life all the sudden gets easy when you are married? Yes, hardships are easier to face with someone, but was I coping out? Hell no. Marriage isn't easy and life doesn't turn into rainbows and unicorns as soon as you say I do. Life's ups just seem a bit more enjoyable when you have someone to share them with. Sure, you shouldn't jump into marriage just to have someone to share life with, and yes, some people make the mistake of marrying the wrong person when they are young. At the same time, if you are 100% sure your significant other is the one for you and you are ready for that step, being under 23 shouldn't stop you. There is no set age at which you should get married or any set list of things you have to do before you take that step.

The point of all of this is simple: Each person is dealt a separate hand in life. Some get married young. Some don't find the person they are going to marry until later in life. Some people never get married. There is no rule book saying at what age you should be hitting each milestone in life. Instead of focusing on changing the cards you were given, make the most of them. If you are 23 and married, live life to the fullest and take every opprtunity. If you are 23 and single, do the same! Life is too short, we don't need anyone telling us how our life is supposed to play out.

Rant over, time to go back to my married life, living abroad and riding elephants

Buying a Car in Okinawa

When you are PCSing to Okinawa, you cannot bring your vehicle with you. That means when you get to the island you will have to buy one, if not two cars upon arrival.

When you get to Okinawa and have started to settle in, you start getting antsy to learn how to drive on the other side of the road and to get out on your own. First things first, you have to take a driving test in order to get a license. Just study the packet that they give you and you will be just fine.

Then, you need a car. Buying a car is super easy here, but it does take time and knowledge. Think about it, tons of people are leaving the island and can't take their car with them. They are in a huge hurry to sell, since they can't have cars in their name when they leave. 

So how do you go about finding the right car? First look at Okinawayardsale.com (bookoo). It's basically a Craigslist for Okinawa. 

This way, you know what the prices are like, what kinds of cars are available, what kinds of features are important, etc. 

Start by determining how much you want to spend. You can get by with spending very little if you don't care about how nice your car is. If you feel like your time on the island would be more enjoyable cruising around in a nicer car, that's fine too. 

Decide what kind of car you want. Do you want something small and great on gas milage? Do you want something big to haul people and gear (scuba) around? Do you want something with 4 wheel drive so you can explore? 

Once you have the big factors down, you can look at cars individually to see the pros and cons of each.

Things to consider: JCI, mechanics, exterior, interior, AC, tires

When considering the exterior, remember the conditions that cars on the island face. There will likely be peeling paint, rust, dents, etc. due to typhoons and salty air. 

JCI is very confusing but neccessary. JCI means Japanese Compulsory Insurance. JCI is a must in order to drive the vehicle. It must be renewed every 2 years. They will inspect the car and you must fix the things on the car that don't meet the standards before you can be issued a JCI. JCI can be very expensive, so it is ideal to get the longest JCI when purchasing a car. You want to at least have a year left on the JCI, so you will only have to pay for it once while you are here on the island.

Other fees: Yearly road tax, title transfer, yearly insurance

The number on your license plate gives you an idea as to how much your taxes will be. You want your number to be high. It is ideal to buy a car with a 500 plate as opposed to buying a car with a 300 or lower plate. 

So, when you are ready to find a car, start by looking on Okinawa Yard Sales(OYS) and the lemon lot. Some vehicles on OYS are also at the lemon lot. The lemon lot is a lot on base where people have paid a small fee to leave their car there to sell. The lemon lot and Okinawa Yard Sales are both good options. You can also go off base to a used car lot. We found that the prices at the used car lot were a significant amount more than the ones on OYS. The one good thing about used lots, all the cars come with a brand new JCI.

The key to buying a car on Okinawa is to negotiate. No one is actually trying to make money off of their car (except on the used car lots). They just want to get it sold without going to far under what it is worth or what they paid for it. Most people will take around $500-$1000 under asking price. Look for good deals. Some people are really desperate and will give you a great deal.

Before arriving on the island, Jake and I set our budget at $7000 for two cars. We thought that was pretty reasonable after doing some research on OYS. When we got to the island, we started by looking at the lemon lot. This gave us an idea of what was on the market and what different types of cars and features cost what. Jake and I agreed that we wanted one small car to zip around in and have low gas milage and one bigger car with 4wd to do some exploring.

We scoured OYS for about 4 days straight. We met with quite a few different people to look at their cars. Some people would not come down on price to what we thought was reasonable. Some cars were not worth the money or did not seem mechanically sound when we test drove them. After looking for awhile, we realized $7000 was way more than we needed to spend. That was a very nice surprise. We realized neither of us needed a super nice car, as long as it was mechanically sound.

We first found a 01' Toyota Will for $1,600 on OYS. After test driving it and checking it out, we offered $1,200. The paint on the entire car needed work, but it was mechanically sound and had very little miles on it. The seller agreed, and so we bought it. 

A couple of days later, Jake heard back from a guy he had been in contact with about a 97' Mitsubishi Pajero. He had test driven it at the lemon lot and really liked it. It had a bit of wear and tear, but we thought it was a good car to have for rugged activities. The guy had originally been asking $3,500, and Jake offered him $2,200. We thought this was a good price because of the exterior damages and the JCI would be up soon. The guy told Jake he had an offer of $2,700 and would get back to him. The offer fell through and the guy had to get it sold because he was leaving the island that week, so he sold it to us for $2,200.

So if you do the math, we got two cars for the whopping price of $3,400. We were incredibly happy with this price and we are happy with our two cars so far. We have had a need for both in different situations. 

So here are my overall tips for buying a car on Okinawa:

-Do your research. Know what cars are going for and how much you want to spend

-Take your time. Don't rush it or you may spend more than you need to.

-Look for deals. People here get in a crunch and need their cars gone. Wait for one of these deals to come along.

-Consider JCI (not like we did with the Pajero) so that you only have to worry about it once

-Negotiate aggressively. You most likely won't offend anyone, the worst thing they could do is say no.

**I know this post was long and boring, but I wanted to share this information with anyone PCSing to Okinawa

Double High Five For Friday 9/27

This week has been a wild one (do I say that every week?)! Because I have so much to share, I am cheating a bit and giving you more than 5 things. Don't tell anyone!

{ONE}

The movers brought our stuff on Monday! It had been sitting in storage for about 3 months, so I was a bit worried about what we would discover. Mold? Mice? Let your imagination run wild. The movers showed up in this fancy truck(like I've said before, the Japanese are so efficient about everything). There was only two of them, which worried me because two guys came to move us in the States and it took over 10 hours. Yep, I was not a happy camper. The movers here arrived with our stuff at 8 a.m. and had it all in the house before 9. I was thoroughly impressed. Then, they were gone and I was left staring at unopened boxes. I had been under the impression that they unpacked for us as well. That's when Jake informs me that he thinks he accidentally waived the unpacking while signing the papers. Ok, there is a language barrier. And it is nice to be able to put things where you want it. But, I am so sick of looking at boxes. We finally have everything unpacked and the house is starting to look put together. We have a huge mountain of boxes and bags of paper outside. The trash man might hate us, not the best first impression.

Coolest truck ever

Our stuff, finally!

Let the madness begin

So much trash. Sorry Planet Earth!

{TWO}

We got another car! Jake wanted something a bit more rugged for outdoor activities. If you saw our other car, you saw how tiny it is. We wanted something bigger incase we ever needed to haul anything/anyone. I actually haven't driven it yet. I am scared to drive it on the little roads here. I will stick with my itty bitty mobile. 

{Three}

Our government furniture was delivered on Tuesday. Since they restrict the amount of stuff you can bring to the island, the military loans you furniture and appliances for your time on the island. The furniture is very plain and boring, but we appreciate it since we have more space than we have ever had before. They pay for one delivery and one pick up of furniture. While they were moving in what we had ordered, I realized we didn't order a washer and dryer! Big WHOOPS. We had to go to the housing office the next day to request them and then pay to have them delivered. It can't believe I messed up like that. Like I said in yesterdays post, I have been quite the space cadet over here.

Oh hey there cutie. NOT

A washer and dryer!

{Four}

For our first meal in our house, I grilled pork chops on our stovetop grillpan. I wanted to share this with you because it worked out great and might be a good option for some of you! We have lived in lots of apartments that don't allow grills and we haven't wanted to invest in one yet. We got this grill pan that sits on top of your burner and works like a charm! The pork chops tasted just like they were from the BBQ. I got this one for around $35 at Bed, Bath, and Beyond. The other side is flat for pancakes and such.

Perfect first dinner

{FIVE}

As we were sitting on the couch, this little cat poked his head up at the back door. I screamed, out of surprise, then went to go check on him. He/she was very small and skinny. It was making this horrible meowing noise. It didn't go away for a couple of days. It sat around on our patio making that same awful noise. It made me super sad that I couldn't do anything to help it. They don't have animal control here. I haven't seen it in about a day, so maybe it found a new home. We were also visited by a cockroach and several lizards.

Just make yourself at home, why dontcha

{Six}

So we went to take a shower the first night we were here and realized there was a problem. Can anyone figure out what it might be??

 Darkness Outside. Light Inside. Large Window. Naked Person.

We did not want everyone seeing us in our birthday suits.

Problem.

Solution. Hang another shower curtain. 

It works for now. And we can still see our wonderful view whenever we want!

{Seven}

We watched our first sunrise in our house from the comfort of our bed. I might actually be a morning person now. 

{Eight}

After 4 long months, we are no longer living out of suitcases! It feels so nice to be able to walk into my (very own walk in) closet and pick something out from my entire wardrobe. I was sick of wearing the same things over and over. I was also sick of everything being wrinkly and have to rummage through everything to find something. It's the little things.

Goodbye, suitcases

{Nine}

Jake went back to work on Wednesday. He was so ready to get his job started and I love seeing him so excited. It was also time that we not spend every waking minute together. We, in general, do so much better when we have a routine. On the other hand, I already miss my partner in crime. I feel like I have a million things to tell him, want his opinion on everything, and want to show him stuff. Wah, wah, cry me a river, right? I will get used to not having him around and being my old, independent self, but right now, while every creak of our new house scares me, I miss him. 

{Ten}

Since Jake did go back to work, what did I do? Shop, of course! I have been running around the house organizing, cleaning, and starting to decorate. I wanted to get out and explore and pick up some items we needed (and some we don't). I went to our favorite dollar store and got some great stuff! I seriously love that place. I also went to a couple of clothing stores. I wanted to see what they have to offer here. I found some really cute stuff. I didn't get anything, though, because I am in a need-to-buy-stuff-for-the-house and it's-too-hot-for-fall-clothes-but-I-don't-want-to-buy-summer-clothes phase right now. Clothes shopping will just have to wait. I did, however, snag a cute porcelain deer head on sale at a boutique. I figured Jake would like it since he couldn't bring his real ones with him. 

Couldn't wait to style him on our uglier than sin  lovely dresser

So there you go, double high five for Friday! Hope y'all have a fabulous weekend. 

                                                                   

             

Our Okinawa Home

We are so happy to have found a beautiful home on the island of Okinawa. We are hoping this house will feel like home for the next few years. We can't wait to get all settled in and making it feel like ours. It was quite the process, which I will share later, but we were actually surprised at how fast we found a place we liked. Overall, we only had to look at about 7 houses over 1 1/2 days before we fell in love with one. 

PROS:

• Close to Jake's work
• 3 bedrooms
• 2 baths
• American Appliances
• Lots of storage space
• Large living area
• Open floor plan
• Large yard with deck
• Fabulous view
• Close to a few good restaurants
• Large kitchen with tons of counter space and storage

CONS

• On a busy road
• Slightly outdated
• Far away from main populated area
• Not close to the best beaches

We had our stuff moved in on Monday (which was a few days ago around these parts). It actually was a pretty easy move-in, which we were thankful for after our 11 hour move out! I will give your more information and tips later on about the move in! We are still settling in. Boxes are everywhere we look. But, now that we have some of our stuff, we are starting to feel like this is home. It is overwhelming, but also fun to be able to organize and start fresh. I am already head over heels in love with this place (Okinawa and OUR HOUSE). It has shown me that a place does not have to be shiny, new, and fancy to feel homey and wonderful. I am so excited to be a in my own place! I am no longer living out of a suitcase after 4 months. I have keys to put on my key chain! I finally feel like a housewife again! I am no living with my parents (as much as I absolutely loved it mom and dad!). I can grocery shop for my little family. I can make my husband dinner and do his laundry. I can set things up and decorate how I want. I am a bit overwhelmed with all the decorating I want to do! I am so impatient and want to get it all done right now. I

We have lived here for about 12 hours and I can already tell I'm going to be very happy. I have more space than I know what to do with. We have so much space, we don't own enough furniture to fill it. We even had to borrow furniture from the government to fill up the space. I have my very own walk in closet and Jake has his own closet! I feel like I live in a mansion. I have the most kitchen cabinets and counter space I have ever had. Ok, this isn't saying much since I used to live in 460 square feet. I guess it doesn't take that much to impress us. 

Life here really gets better and better. I know there will be hard times. There will be times that we miss America. There will be times that we will be lonely as can be. But today, I am glad we have a little piece of this island that we can make home. 

Kokusai Street and Cafe Do Ka Do Ka

We had a wonderful weekend of exploring! I cannot believe it is already Monday. We started out Saturday morning with a trip to our favorite 100 Yen ($1) store. We have a SERIOUS obsession. The dollar stores in America do not even compare. I can't wait to go back and get more stuff once we are settled in and see what we need.

My loot

We then headed south and picked up our friend before heading to Kokusai Street in Naha, the capitol city. 

We parked at the craziest parking garage I have ever seen. You pull your car into an elevator type thing and they send it up until you are ready to come get it. 

We decided to eat at one of the cool looking Okinawan Cafes. It had the coolest atmosphere and the food did not disappoint. I think it was one of my favorite meals since we arrived!

After lunch we got ice cream at the chain ice cream shop here in Okinawa. I wanted to try the popular purple ice cream. I found out that it is Ube ice cream. Ube is a purple sweet potato they grow here on the island. It was surprisingly really good! 

Ube

We then walked down Kokusai Street. It is such an awesome place. It is a street lined with interesting and crazy stores. You can find really weird things, souvenirs, clothes, and tons of food. We saw lots of restaurants we wanted to try. There are also tons of stores and stands with fruits and vegetables, fish, bakery goods, and flowers. I wanted to try so many things but was way too full from lunch. I can't wait to get groceries, especially fresh fish and produce, at the local markets. 

The large covered area of Kokusai Street

An Okinawan Liquor with a poisonous Habu snake

Sweet Bread in lots of Flavors

Jake eating a pumpkin sweet bread

Fresh Fish

After we went all the way down the street and back, we were very hot and tired. We drove our friend home and then headed to see Lexie. We also went to the exchange to buy a fan for when we move into our house. I am pretty sure it's a necessity. It is almost October and I am still sweating every time I walk out of the door. I think the high was 90 this weekend. I guess I won't complain when it's 60 degrees in the middle of winter. After, we wanted to go watch the sunset, but it was very cloudy and looked like it was about to rain, so we just headed home. We had been eating out way too much, so we decided it was ANOTHER PB&J night. I feel like a 5 year old. I can't wait to have a kitchen so I can start cooking again. 

Sunday morning I dragged Jake out of bed to take me to a Cafe up north I had heard about. We drove for awhile and got lost for about 45 minutes (oops, sorry Jake). Fortunately, when you get lost here, you always happen upon some beautiful views. And let's just say, this cafe was so worth getting lost for. It was not only a cafe with a breathtaking view, but also a pottery gallery. We had so much fun sitting on the deck looking out at the beautiful water and then perusing the intricate dishes and vases. 

In Japan, you take off your shoes when you enter homes and restuarants. They gave us slippers to wear

How cute is this??

My tofu cake

Jake's cinnamon toast

Beautiful pottery

Directions to Cafe Do Ka Do Ka: Take highway 58 north to Onna. At the intersection of 58, 73, and the 58 bypass, take the 58 bypass to the right. Right after you turn, take the road immediately to your left. There will be three brown signs pointing up the hill. It is a small entrance, so you may miss it. Drive up the road and the cafe will be on your left. 

It was seriously a perfect morning. I could have sat there all day. Once we left, we headed east towards our house. We took a road along the beach and found a spot to stop. The great thing about this island, you can just wander around and find beautiful spots. We found a cute little beach with tons of sea shells!

We were dripping with sweat after our beach walk, so we stopped by our house before heading back to the hotel. It is all ready for us to move in! On our way back home, we also stopped at KFC. You may think this is weird, but we were really curious. Mcdonalds, A&W, KFC, and Starbucks are all really popular here. We wanted to see what it was like compared to the states. The menu was a bit different, but the food was good! 

We had a great time exploring this weekend and can't wait for this crazy week. We will be moving into our house, getting another car, and finally getting settled in. I can't wait to share all of the exciting things taking place!

Also, I am hosting a Target giftcard giveaway with one of my blogger friends, Maegen. Go hop on over to her blog to enter!

Target giftcard giveaway HERE