Tuesday, June 26, 2007

Eight Random Facts

My seminary friend has “tagged” me with a post called 8 random facts about myself. Enjoy the break from Japanese culture, and take a glimpse into the missionary...

1. As my friend Lisa would say, “I don’t have the sense of direction God gave a toaster.” I have been known to say things like, “Turn left at the curvy road.” Anyone who has ever been in Dubuque (or any of the other river towns I have lived in) knows how utterly ridiculous this sentence is.

2. Much to my family’s amusement, I have trouble identifying even the most famous actors and actresses.

3. I stink at Trivial Pursuit. Sure, I can parse Hebrew and Latin verbs (and should still be able to fake my way through Greek), but, the longest-running television show? I have no idea (see number two again).

4. I love sumo wrestling.

5. I have used a squat toilet on a moving train.

6. For someone who grew up with computers in the classroom, even from elementary school, I am unnaturally technologically-confused.

7. My all-time favorite movie is The Princess Bride.

8. I have not yet eaten blowfish in Japan, but I have tried the horse sashimi.

Monday, June 04, 2007

What's the difference between a small earthquake and a medium one?

Well, besides, a freaked out missionary?

Not much, really. I didn't actually break the bowl I dropped when the medium earthquake scared me.

Tokyo averages one earthquake every two months. We were due for one in March; it didn't happen, and then: surprise! There were two last week.

When a small earthquake happens, the house shudders. That's all. It shudders, like me when I'm cold. It shudders, then stops. I am still frozen in place for a good couple minutes afterward, making sure it's over. But it always is. The small one happened late last week as I was getting out of bed. Like I said, it was small, and getting up was only delayed an extra "Earthquake Minute."

The very next day, however, as I was minding my own business, eating my ice cream, the house shuddered again. Again! And this time, it kept shuddering. That's when I dropped the bowl (don't worry, I had just finished eating when the quake started, so no ice cream was harmed in this fiasco) . Usually the quaking/shuddering is finished by the time I get nervous, but this one lasted an extra ... well, an extra minute.

Yes, I know. But earthquakes really bother me!

So, the answer is: the difference between a small earthquake and a medium earthquake is a dropped ice cream bowl.