Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

The day yesterday was...well, it could've been a lot better. But it did get better after lunch, so that's good.

We woke up, had everyone was helping with breakfast. So, I tried to help, but, as usual, got prety much ignored. So, I feel a little dizzy/woosy, and I decide to start cleaning instead. I clean the bathroom and one of the guest rooms being used. Not completly cleaned, but clean enough for now. We eat breakfast, and at one point KaKa-san used the part of your chopsticks you eat with to pick up something in a communal bowl. Okaa-san told her that that wasn't how you do it. Otoo-san looked up at me, and I at him, and we both kind of smiled because I had gotten that right.

Well, anyway, we're suppossed to clean the jam house and the guest roms. So, we start cleaning the guest rooms, but really, there's only enough for two people to do stuff. I mean, at a hotel, they have 2 maids, not 3. So I do very little and feel bad. Their cleaning the room that I had folded up the futons for earlier, and I decide to go back to our room and wait for them there. Soon KaKa-san comes and I ask if their done and we need to clean the jam house. She says that they're going to clean the other rooms. I just kind of look at her and say "Doushide?" (Why?) Because they weren't dirty and I was bored out of my mind. So I shrugged and started cleaning the jam house by myself.

They come at some point, and we cleaned mostly in silence. Whenever I cleaned something, they went back and cleaned it. And we cleaned everything like 6 times. So I finally went and got Okaa-san who said everything looked fine. I then asked Otoo-san to check it so we could have break, and he just said "Gohan." Which means, food. Meaning, we were free. He asked if I wanted to go pick up lunch with him from the MaxValu. Sure, I said. Not like I had anything to do at the house. So, we drive to the store and I push the cart around and pick up lunch boxes (o-bento) and when we check out I ask how we're going to carry everything (actally I said "nani" [what] and made the motion to carry something). Otoo-san said a box, and we were in a hurry to get back because Okaa-san needed help, so I make a small-ish box enough to fit everything but the o-bento box, which I'll carry. Otoo-san goes to pick it up, and everything falls through the bottom. Oh, I was so embarassed! He quickly made another box that fit everything and didn't break. We laughed about it on the way to the car and he taught me the words for "to drop," and "embarassed." I can only remember one. I also learned the word for cloud and poision, because the catepillars are poisionious here! Eek!

I really am learning the essentials. hahaha.

After lunch, which we took in shifts (and I found out KaKa-san sits like a "man" when she sits at a low table), I mowed the lawn. Just the side, for about an hour and a half. Then, it was end of work time, and I contacted Dave to see if he wanted to get together. I met him about half-way from his place to mine and we walked back. I asked Otoo-san if I could eat dinner with him and he said ok. We just had to wait for Slyph-san and KaKa-san to get back from the store to grab another bike. We study for a little awhile, they come back, and we decide to go to JoJo's, this cafe/restaurant near his work. Dave also prompetly finds out how out of shape I'm in. I suck at biking.

We get in (Dave's treat!) and order some gralic rolls and a hamburger (with egg on it?) nd I have a strawberry milkshake. It. Was. So. Good. It was huge, and I ate the whole thing. Plus, the chips that came with it. And when I say chips, I mean the English chips. I also had a latte afterwards. I was so full! We said we'd be back by 7:30, and we left JoJo's at 7:30. Dave rides the whole way back with me so I don't have to walk with two bikes, and then leaves. I did feel really bad though since he hurt his foot and he had to walk that whole way...

I get back, take a shower, and then study a little and go to bed.

I find out that KaKa and Slyph are being taught how to make this certain kind of egg in the morning and I say I want to help too! I wake up at 6:20, then decide to sleep a little more...only to wake up an hour later when breakfast is made! They didn't even wake me up to help. Gah. Plan = epic fail.

I still don't quite understand why Okaa-san doesn't treat me the same way. It's really confusing. Maybe it's just because I'm not domestic enough. But I mean, I'm taking in the culture. I'm sitting the way a "woman" in Japan is suppossed to sit, I'm eating everything they put in front of me (not what they put to the side of me though), and am trying hard to learn the language and do everything I can. I told Slyph and Ka-san that I don't like Okaa-san likes me and they said "No!" They explained that it's probably just the language barrier, and rather than attempt (and possibly fail) at helping/doing something for her,she just does it herself. I think that might be part of it, but not all of it. I just feel like there's more.

See, at lunch time, about 6 people showed up for lunch at the same time. So everyone's helping with something. I ask what I should do, and Oto-san hands me a fly-swap since Okaa-san didn't say anthing. So I swatted at the one fly in the kitchen while everyone else cooked and helped prepare the customers food. When it was ready to take out, who took it out? Yeah, that's right, Slyph and Ka-san. There were 5 dishes, and Okaa-san didn't ask me to take out a single one. Umm...hi....yeah, I used to be a waitress. I can take all 5 out at once if you wanted...Oh, no, you'd rather have them, fine. But when they leave, I help clean up and pick everything off the table, and my waitressing skills come in handy here. I pile everything (3 people's dishes [rice, main meal, soup, drink]) on to one hand. Okaa-san actually THANKED me. I guess there's a first time to everything.

I need to start getting up sooner, and just trying to think positively. I gotta keep trying. It's not quite the experience I wanted, but it's an experience and I need to embrace it.