Big Fish

Wendy and I are watching it right now. A couple of observations:

1 - Albert Finney deserved a nomination for either Best Actor or Best Supporting Actor. Probably the latter.
2 - The young mother and the older mother look amazingly like each other.
3 - Danny DeVito is a kick. The more I see him, the more I like him.
4 - The Mom's original fiance is Roy from The Office
5 - Ewan McGregor is a great actor.
6 - Writing makes the movie. But this movie has so much more. Great writing, acting (see number 1 above), lighting, cinematography
7 - This film reminds me of O Brother Where Art Thou. It almost seems like this should have been made by the Coen Brothers.
8 - The girl who plays the french wife to Albert Finney's son is very charming.
9 - Steve Buscemi can be very funny. Kind of like John Turturro.
10 - Great Soundtrack.

Coming home in glory

Don, Amy, and William! Hi! I was wondering if/when I should pick you all up. I hope things are going well, and I'm so excited to see you soon. love, Anna

GSA opening social

This weekend we had our English Graduate Student Association kickoff party, and it was a lot of fun. I thought I'd share some pictures.


The night started with one of our professor's jazz bands. Dennis Perry (he's great--teaches Hitchcock and Poe and will hopefully be on my thesis committee) plays the jazz guitar. They were fantastic and are real deal (we had to pay them). Dennis is the nicest, quietest, most unassuming guy ever.



After the jazz band we split into groups and performed Tom Stoppard's fifteen minute Hamlet. A lot of the spouses and kids joined in and it was hilarious. One group would yell "time" throughout their play, and then the audience would choose an adverb that they had to act like. So they did "pregnantly," "chicly," "insanely," "angrily".



We had a fun time. Here's the GSA presidency from L-R Spencer (social coordinator), Me, Sarah (scrivener editor--we're good friends), and Sara (secretary). Brooke (the VP) had to leave early.

posting pictures

Does anyone else have trouble posting pictures? I've been trying to post some from the GSA party we had this weekend for three days now, and it won't ever let me. It either can't find the server, or it can't find the blog. I've tried to post on my blog as well and get the same result. Any ideas?

New sink and new tile floor in laundry room

Home Remodel (Sort of...)

Here are the photos to substantiate the rumors. Note well the delighted lady of the house admiring her new counter top. If you look at the ceiling you will notice that the lighting soffet is gone and recessed lighting has replaced it. Mike King is in the process of repairing the sheetrock. There are small can lights around the cabinets to add lighting to the counter. The new cooktop is very similar to the one we had. Mom likes the new sink and faucet. The chandelier over the breakfast room table is gone. The bookshelf has a string of accent lights. It looks good. The laundry room has a new tile floor and the kitchen floor will be changed next month.

Will asleep

How does somebody fall or stay asleep in this position? I think only babies can do it 

Smile!

When we ask Will to smile now, this is what he does. Clasps his hands, squints his eyes...it's hilarious. 

wedding day

At the Meiji Shrine, weddings are still performed frequently. We went last Saturday and saw three or four wedding couples in the hour we were there. This girl later took off the red coat and just had her white kimono on. I couldn't believe hair! How do you get hair to do that? We also saw some beautiful Japanese gardens that day, and went to Ginza on Monday, a national holiday here. Ginza is like downtown New York 5th Avenue...lots of high-end shopping. It was a great weekend. 

Breakfast

Or as Gregory calls it, bwekstiss.

This morning, I made eggs with sausage, tomatoes, and green Onion in them. I also made freshly grated hash browns. It made me think of Dad's breakfasts.

What are your top breakfasts? Here are mine:

1 - Dad Breakfast
2 - Poppy's
3 - Dutch Baby
4 - Eggs Benedict
5 - Sourdough French Toast
6 - Apple Pie (don't lie, you know you thought "Brilliant!" when you read that)
7 - Sausage McMuffin with Egg (bad I know... but I am a sucker)
8 - Grandma's Raisin Loaf
9 - Pancakes/Waffles
Further Down - Cold Cereal
20,000,000 - Raisin Toast with Peanut Butter (my daily fare - by choice... don't ask why. I can't explain it)

* one note - 1-8 are not in explicit order. in other words, if pushed they could change order.

Sorry, no picture.

Sorry, I have no picture to post; we're not totally up and running in the electronics department yet. I just wanted to give a quick update, though.

We love the house. Little by little we are getting the last of the unpacking done. The kids couldn't be happier. Every afternoon we have all the neighborhood children running in and out of the house. I've actually had to change my grocery budget/shopping habits to support it. SOOOO worth it, though, to have them here. My favorite thing to see is all the boys running through the street wearing various costumes from our dress-up box (usually a mixture of Power Rangers, police officers, knights, and cowboys) and shooting bad guys, or each other, with their empty water guns. It is so cute.

Nathan has started both first grade and soccer. He loves them both. John and I went to Back to School night last night and met his teacher. She seems FABULOUS! She is very loving and seems to really know her stuff. We were blown away. We feel that we couldn't have designed a teacher more tailor-made for Nathan's personality. The school seems fabulous as well.

Katie and John are going to the Father/Daughter campout tonight. She is SO excited. Gregory is still Superman thinks we should name the new baby "Diaper Face". The baby is getting big (or at least my stomach is) and is very active. I'm trying to thoroughly enjoy my last few weeks of being able to sleep through the night. Work is good for John. He is busy, busy, busy, but enjoying it.

So, we'll get a poicture posted soon. Just wanted to give a little update.
We love you all,
Wendy

Just wanted to give my two bits. Japan is so fun. I can't believe how kind and friendly everyone is. Most everybody speaks some English so it is easy to get around and find places. I did walk the wrong direction for about 20 minutes yesterday, but other than that, we've done great thankfully. William didn't do too great on the flight. He slept for a half hour, and then not again until the last 2 hours of the flight, falling asleep at 11 pm our time. Even the Benadryl our doctor suggested and prescribed didn't knock him out--that boy has a strong will. Luckily, he wasn't too fussy and didn't cry much, but it did take us constantly entertaining and distracting him to keep him that way. It was a lot of work.

William is really struggling with the jet lag. I can usally get him through the morning pretty well, but after he's taken a 3 hour afternoon nap and I try to wake him up so he'll sleep at night, he hates it. He fights waking up so bad, and then he is just a terrorl until I put him to bed at 8 or 9, then he wakes up at 2 and wants to be up for a couple of hours. Fun times. I can't wait until he gets adjusted.

But don't get me wrong, he is as cute as ever and says I love you in response to us, and gives us the cutest squinty eyed smile when we ask him to smile. He is a fun companion to have along in our morning escapades. The Japanese just love him. On the way down this path, this huge group of people came by and all of them started talking to and waving at William. this one lady picked him up and all these other ladies crowded around touching his face and talking to him. People love seeing William. Everyone always smiles and waves at him and get a kick of him waving back at them. I hear this is how the Japanese are with children. I don't know if it is all children, or American white children or what, but he has never received this much attention in his life. It is funny.

The food at the Korean barbeque was every bit as good as Don said. I loved it and wouldn't mind if we could go a couple of times a week. I went shopping for food--it is expensive here! The apples were 2 dollars a piece. I couldn't believe it. Our concierge told me about a more American supermarket that I went to today. It was nice to see food I was actually familiar with.

I think Ann is right. The more I am here, the more I will be used to it and love it. I already am having fun, and feeling more comfortable as I realize how kind everyone is. Anyway, hope everything is going well for all of the Bennions--love you guys!
Amy

The Dog at Shibuya Station

This statue of a dog is at Shibuya Station (right by that massive crosswalk) and is a famous meeting place. In the late 1960's there was a dog that would follow his master to work and see him off everyday at the train station. Everyday the dog would come back in the evening, wait for his master to return and walk home with him. One day the man died at work and so the dog waited all evening until the last train came and then went home. It returned every day to the station to wait for his master until the dog finally died. The people of Tokyo donated funds to erect this statue to remember the dog. Loved the story so much that I wanted to get a pic at the statue. 

Evening at Jo-Joen

So for Amy and Will's first official night in Tokyo we jumped on the metro and went to Shibuya (which is where my office is and where I was staying before they came) and went to the same Korean BBQ that I went to on my first night. We had a blast. Will was dead tired from the jet lag and slept through the entire meal.
Amy has never felt very adept at chopsticks, but there wasn't an option here. She was doing really well with them and at one point looked at me and said, "It must be Japan. I could never do this before." We had a little enclosed room to ourselves and had a blast. 

Jo-Joen Cont'd

The marinade on the beef was nice and sweet (like Yoshidas). This place would do great in the states. I wonder if letting folks grill their own beef is too risky. Too bad!! 

Ann & Rob

We had to get the infamous couples-at-Cannon-Beach-shot. :) We also saw some sand crabs. I have to admit, I became pretty excited and loud when I discovered these things. They dig down into the sand right after low tide. They swarmed the beach burrowing into the sand. I held one while Rob took a picture. I asked if he wanted to trade spots--he holds the crab while I take the picture. He kindly declined and said I could have the crabs, and he would kill the spiders. :) Good enough for me!

On the Beach.....walking to the city.

Here are some more pictures we took. Rob is out in front near Haystack Rock. Also, the other picture is a shot of "The Needles" (i think is what they call them). I think it's a great name for it. It's right by Haystack Rock. "Needle in a Haystack," possibly?
(by the way, if you click on the picture, it will get larger...something new I learned)

Cheese anyone??

The factory. It's a great setup...you can take self-guided tours. But wow, that place always seems packed! Don't forget to stand on one side or the other, but NOT in the middle.

BEACH Pictures!

Our hotel where we ate breakfast on the top deck. Our hotel room was just to the right.
We stopped to take a picture at a lookout point on our way to Tillamook

Cannon Beach

So this last weekend, Rob and I enjoyed some great sun at Cannon Beach. We wanted to share some pictures. On Friday, we checked in at our hotel and then walked the beach down to the little city for a bite to eat. On Saturday, we drove to Tillamook and toured the factory, sampled some great cheese and curd, and couldn't leave without buying ice cream cones--white licorice for Ann and mint chocolate chip for Rob. We also took some pictures with a couple of cows. I kept begging Rob to go and stand over by this colorful blue bull (it matched his polo shirt), but he wasn't too thrilled. Finally, after begging, he agreed. Then, I stood by the traditional bovine to have my picture taken. I decided to stand by the calf instead of the big cow where someone else was snapping a picture. It wasn't until the car that we checked the picture and enjoyed a good laugh. Thanks Rob! ;) I guess that's what I get for begging him to have his picture taken. Later that afternoon we enjoyed some R&R on the beach--Rob went for a run while I started on one of 3 novels for school. On Sunday, we attended a Seaside Ward where there were many visitors for the weekend. It was an enjoyable testimony meeting. Later that evening, we bundled up for a bonfire on the beach where we roasted smores and drank sparkling cider. Robert is quite the romantic! It really was a great time and unforgettable. We couldn't recommend our hotel more!!Enjoy the pictures! :)

Shabu Shabu and Karaoke

Thursday night was such a blast!!! Josh (James) took us out to an incredible Japanese dinner and Karaoke wasn't just surprisingly fun... it was an absolute blast! I seriously can't believe how much fun it was! The night went like this:

At 7:00 everyone from the Japanese office met with Josh and we went to dinner at a famous Shabu Shabu restaurant. There were so many courses I couldn't believe it. One of the courses was sashimi (raw fish) served on ice. After my first experience a few days ago I was a bit hesitant, but I guess there is a difference between $20 sashimi and $200 sashimi besides the price. It was delicious. The best part however was the shabu shabu. They serve big slices of beef that are cut paper thin. And they have these containers with coals in the middle that boil water. Shabu shabu literally means swish swish, so you take the beef and swish it for about 3 seconds in the water and it's cooked. You then quickly dip it in a sauce and eat it. Wow! It was a ton of fun and the food was some of the best I've ever had. Incredible service by women in traditional kimonos. Everyone had a great time.

After we were stuffed we went to a karaoke spot in Rippongi. You literally walk into this building and you choose one of 40 rooms where you'd like to Karaoke. The room has a little stage and nice cushioned benches a big screen TV and two microphones. It was incredible. The pictures don't do it justice since the flash makes it look fully lit. It was so much fun. I was worried at first but singing was mandatory and I was sitting next to Josh so I not only took my turn, but everyone took at least three. We were up to about 1:00 am doing Karaoke and sipping on sodas. I have included some pictures below. It was a scream and a half. Everyone sings along, claps and cheers. It was terrific.

I could hardly keep my eyes open on the way home and everyone was tired but in great spirits today at the office. A must experience for anyone coming to Japan. Good times.

Shabu Shabu

 

Kanshasan

 

Mmmmm.

 

Karaoke!!!

 

Shoichiro and me

 

Yoichi: the Karaoke Samuri

 

Karaoke is so dumb... I didn't get into it at all!

 

A view of the train station (the giant Tokyu sign) and soccer pitch on the top of a building

 

Night view from the hotel

 

Day 1

So far so good. Tokyo is beautful and the food is excellent. For lunch yesterday I felt brave and had some great sushi and some supposedly great sashimi. Wow. I admit to not loving the raw fish especially since the fishy flavor was so strong. The sushi tasted great however.

Our CEO is in town and we had a meeting with him this afternoon. He layed out the vision for the Japan team and it went really well. It is interesting to see how this team really is a miniature Omniture business. This team is basically in the same spot that Omniture was in about 4 -5 years ago. Focused on sales sales and sales. The meeting went really well and as I listened to Josh I felt excited to be there.

We will meet with our client today for the first time so I'm in my suit and tie. A big thanks to John Burke for the great advice on Japanese business etiquette. It basically happens here exactly like John said it would. Business cards are passed out like confetti. They are given and received with two hands and then you take a moment to study the card. Once you are done, you put the card in place of honor like your bag or front shirt pocket. Everyone is incredible and the Japan team does so well. We are all in one room together with a beautiful view of Tokyo from the 22nd floor.

I have taken a couple of pictures which I will post. Much love.

PS- on Thursday the Japan team has a mandatory meeting with the CEO in the evening for a Karaoke night. Singing is also mandatory... gulp. It will be a riot.

Greetings from Japan

I wanted to let you all know that I have arrived safely and am up early after a decent night sleep last night.

The area of Tokyo where I am staying is called "Shibuya" and it's probably the most happening place I've ever been. I arrived at the hotel at about 7:00 pm and met one of my co-workers at about 7:30 for some dinner. Walking onto the street is an amazing experience. You are bombarded by giant neon signs and huge TVs showing commercials and ads and blasting out music and words from all over. We went to a Japanese BBQ restaurant close to the hotel and had an incredibly delicious dinner. They brought us out some great raw beef which we cooked on a grill that is built into the table. Amy and I will definitely have to go there as soon as we arrive. We also ate some tounge which was also really good (by choice since we ordered it). Don't worry hon, we don't have to order it. The restaurant was beautiful and the service was impeccable. Here they don't just slap a coaster down on the table... they carefully place a coaster and adjust it so that it is facing you correctly. You don't tip in Japan either so I'm wondering where the motivation comes from :). They had four dipping sauces for the meat as well and they were really good. So far so good with Japanese dining.

As I was saying before, Shibuya is incredibly busy and is evidently the "hang out" place for teens and twenty-somethings. You see a lot of Japanese fashionistas walking around as well. To get an idea of what it looks like I found this video on google. The video is taken right outside the hotel where I am staying. In fact I'm pretty sure that the video taken from inside the building is from the same hotel. The hotel overlooks the famous crosswalks called "Hachicko Crossing". We had to cross there in order to get to the restaurant. It was swarming with people. Pretty wild. When I walk to the elevator I have a view of that indoor soccer field on the top of the building. Some folks were practicing last night.

I'll post some of my own pictures when I get a chance.

Konichi Wa

For those of you that we haven't had a chance to call personally we wanted to let you know that Amy, Will and I will be going to Japan on a special assignment for work. We were asked to go on Thursday evening, we negotiated and agreed around lunch on Friday and I'll be heading off to Japan in about 24 hours. Nothing like flying by the seat of your pants. Amy and Will are securing their passports and are going to join me in a week and we will stay there for about a month.

We couldn't be more excited about the fun proposition of discovering Japan for the first time. I'm excited to have some international business experience and work with one of the largest tech companies in Japan (Rakuten). If it is alright with everyone else we probably plan to post all of our adventures directly on this site. We know that we will be hogging the blog but we hope that others continue to post as well. We want to keep up-to-date on your lives while we're away.

We'll miss everyone and we look forward to emails or blog posts over the next month or so.

Love,

Amy, Will and Don