Ramble Ramble Rumble Rumble

Ok...it is midnight and I'm awake. I've been having SUCH a hard time falling asleep at night. I should just take the melatonin. I don't know why I haven't. I think I feel like i don't want to take it too late and feel groggy in the morning..although it isn't a sleeping pill so I shouldn't have that effect.

Zzzzzzzzz

So N. has introduced me to Louis Theroux and his series of shows and tonight we watched the one on that they call the most hated family in America (watch the full episode here). The Westboro Baptist Church. A small cult-esue church that detests gay people and pickets the funerals of soldiers. Honestly, these people were unbelievably off. It was almost creepy. Every time a question was posed by Louis - they avoided the answer or called him dumb. That had not an intelligent answer to say. Not one.

Look..I'm all for free speech. But what i don't get is these obviously controversial organizations who have such idiots acting as their spokespeople or their representation that by association the organization looks dumb. You would think they would at least make an effort to put forward a charismatic and interesting front person to encourage people to listen.

Nope. Not these people. They seem to advocate ruffling people's feathers under the guyse that they like making them mad. They bring their sIt is remall children out to picket (the youngest was 6) who don't understand what is going on and then are surprised when their kids take the brunt of people's wrath (not that I advocate taking it out on children who don't know better - but what kind of parents are these).

The leader of this church was the worst. Fred Phelps. When Louis (the journalist) asked him a question - he refused to answer it under the guise that Louis was just too dumb. Umm..what?

I mean..I am so bothered by these people that I am struggling to express how completely idiotic these people are to me. Their whole theory is that that they - the 70 or so people in this church - are the only people in the entire world who will go to heaven and EVERYONE else will go to hell.

I found it really sad and scary and disheartening to watch. I know people like this exist. And I know for the most part you can't change their minds. But sometimes I almost just don't want to know. I just don't.

I don't understand how people can be so judgemental or hateful or cruel or heartless and convince themselves that it is all in the name of God. In a horrible twisted way it almost makes you want something bad to happen to someone they can understand that bad things happen to all people.

One of the girls said that if she was hit by a car and killed her father would probably laugh and be happy because it means that she is wicked and evil and it was god's plan to kill her.

I mean. COME ON!

*sigh*

Fundamentally, I've never understood this human need to hate. I don't get it. People should believe what they want but why does any belief have to revolve around hating other people. Live your life the way you want it. These people live through hating others. How can that be satisfying. How can that be satisfying for anyone.

I don't get it. I just don't. It makes me feel ill and want to find a place where people like that don't exist. But sometimes I Think that means i would need to go to an island alone.

That would be boring.

I should not watch that stuff before bed. Now I"m all worked up with no one to vent to.

Boo.

Home again

I'm back from yet another international trip - back to Japan. I really like Tokyo. I feel surprisingly comfortable there (with the exception of the issue with the language). It is easy to get around. It is clean. The people are friendly and helpful. I can't complain. I'm still not quite brave enough to meander around alone but I feel more at ease every time I visit. And I'm learning to love certain Japanese treats (Toko Banana and the sesame mochi).This time we went out for some Korean bar-b-que style eating and it was AMAZING. Everything we ate was melt-on-our-mouths tasty. I've decided to try whatever I can when over there. This time, the new additions were:
1. Eel (not bad)
2. Rice porridge with scallops (definitely not my thing)
3. Seaweed with picked plum (possibly the most horrible thing I've ever eaten)
4. A sweet potato and ice cream desert
5. Tofu desert (like a yoghurt)
6. Chicken with raw egg (it was tasty but I couldn't get past the gooeyness of the raw egg)

That is all I can think off hand.

We spent the last night at karaoke. All night. I mean..ALL NIGHT! I got home at 7am. I'm so very tired.

And then I got home yesterday at about 9am. Got home about 10am. At 10:30 I went to lie down for an hour or so...and then was woken up at 5:30 that night! I couldn't believe it. I never sleep like that. And I slept through the night after dinner and I'm still EXHAUSTED.

Overall..good trip. I had fun and I love Tokyo and I'm ready to go back.

And now to get ready for my next trip :)

Tagggerific!

Damn...I was tagged an I didn't know it. You are evil Procrasto. EVIL!

Ok..so the rules are (according to he who tagged me)
- Link to the person that tagged you.
- Post the rules on your blog.
- Share six non-important things/habits/quirks about yourself.
- Tag six random people at the end of your post by linking to their blogs.
- Let each random person know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their website.

So now I have to think of six things to say about me that are important, quirky, habits etc...ARGH! That is hard. How do I narrow it down to just one! ;)

Here we go:
1. I bite my nails. Compulsively. It is a sign that i am nervous, stressed, or bothered. It is, as the poker players would say, my tell.
2. I have an addiction to homemade mac and cheese. I love it. Like I love cheddar. Which is my biggest vice. Cheese. Strong cheddar cheese.
3. I have only one ovary and only one fallopian tube (like you didn't all know that one already! Who hasn't heard all the gory surgery details?)
4. I sing really loud and dance a lot when I'm alone. I pretend I'm a bit of a star.
5. I am immensely shy and no one ever believes that!
6. I sometimes cuddle with my pillow when I'm alone because I sleep better when I pretend someone else is there. Even though it is just a pillow. And I know that. But when I was younger...I did make out with that pillow...so I just pretend this is an ex staying over.

Woohoo! Done and done. Now for the tagging. So the rules are I need to tag someone AND link to their blog AND leave a comment on their blog. So I have to find people i can link to.

So - Raheem Shakur, Mr.LargeWeiner(meaning the dog), Banana, Hannah-Fantabulous, my ladies of no links (the gang of O5C) aaannnddd Lovely Lana! You are all tagged!

Get to it!

Coachella!

For some reason I can't post my trip pics. It just isn't working. BOOOOO!

Let me try again:

YAY! It worked - this is a photo from Tokyo. Shinjuku specifically. Right outside of our hotel!


One day I will figure out how to get the rest up and you can all share in the joy that was my trip to Thailand.

I am off to Japan on Monday - more air miles for me ;) And I get to go to Japan with people who speak Japanese - which will mean this is going to be a TOTALLY new experience.

And even more exciting news - I got Coachella tickets today! Woohoo! Two years in a row baby. I'm pretty excited. I don't think the line-up is quite as exciting as last year...but there are some good people playing (like Metric - my FAVORITE!)

Ok..that is my whole check-in...I'm sleepy.

ANyone out there watching the Tudors?

Home and last update

We are home...safe and sound :)

Here is the lat update I sent out (just so you can all read where we were at) - which somehow didn't make it up on the blog

Pics to go up soon!


Check in #4! so we are on the lovely island of Ko Phi Phi (http://wikitravel.org/en/Ko_Phi_Phi ) - where a James Bond movie or two was locaed for you James Bond fans - and have been taking full advantage of how relaxing the island is and doing asolutely nothing (and loving every second of it). We arrived by boat and had to talk the smallest plank ever just to get onto land (I have a new respect for pirates and those who actually had to walk a plank to their death...it is no fun). We had our moments of doubt when we first arrived, but found ourselves staying in a lovely bungalow complete with air conditioning and TV (hallelujah...we have TV!). We have lazed around at the beach for two days and caught up on all our missed sleep and jet lag and now feel totally relaxed - just in time to move to our next destination - Bangkok (with a one-night stop in Phuket).

This island is pretty amazing. It was demolished by the tsunami and there are signs of rebuilding all over the island. There are also signs of how badly things were destroyed. There are cats everywhere here...lots of kittens...and geckos climbing on all the walls (we have two living in our bungalow - I pretend not to see them and they don't bother me. It is RIDICULOUSLY hot durin the day..that heat that makes you lazy and tired. The water is like bathwater, so ou can't even cool off in that. But it is a beautiful emerald green. Mesmerizing to look at. The people here are friendly and there has been no food poisoning to date (phew). I am now totally addicted to phineapple fruit shakes though.

We are loving the feeling of soft sand between our toes. I thought Nick had gotten some color but quickly realized it was just the red from the umbrella reflecting off his face. We both remain as pale as ever!

Nick bumped his head trying to get out of a mini-bathroom. He is to tall for life here. We have noticed that i seem to fall victim to all the natural elements - food poisoning, mosquito bites - and Nick keeps injuring himself just to keep up -cut himself bambo rafting and INTENTIONALLY drove his head into a ceiling just to compete. Bastard! :)

We have taken a MILLION stupid pictures so you can all enjoy the fun here (including pictures of Nick's bump). Hope all is well!

Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Nothing really exciting to report on our end. Since the last email update I got ridiculously sick after eating a questionable burger (noted - Don't eat the meat) and have spent the past couple of days being sick as can be. But I'm alive again and survived the trip down to Krabi (longest plane ride ever). Today we take the boat over to the Phi Phi Islands where we can relax and just enjoy the beach for a few days. More updates soon.

Update 2 - Chiang Mai

Here is update number two! We flew from Narita into Bangkok and were immediately hit by the heat as soon as we got off the plane. We only had a stop in Bangkok so found a hotel nearby to prepare for our early morning flight the next day and then we were off to our first vacation destination - Chiang Mai in Northern Thailand.

Here are briefly some of the highlights of the trip to Thailand so far:
1. Meandering up the hills of Northern Thailand to meet some members of the hilltribes here
2. Riding an elephant (and Nick dropping his water bottle off said elephant mid-walk)
3. Going bamboo rafting with Nick steering - almost tipping the boat when I tried to get on, Nick falling off when we hit some kind of rock or branch, and the whole boat tipping in the water and me losing one of my seatmates into the shallow river)
4. Watching Nick swim in a waterfall (and trying not to look like he was clutching on for his life as the water rushed past the rocks)
5. Taking a full day Thai cooking class (I can now make yellow curry, pad thai, thai chicken souffle, and a noodle salad - I have also learned that I can tolerate absolutely NO spice at all and nearly died when trying one of Nick's dishes that had one pepper in it. Thai people can eat them raw and usually put about 9 in their dishes. 9 peppers = the death of Tali)


Winner of the most terrifying moment of the trip award:
Taking a tuk tuk down from the restaurant up on Doi Suthep (a mountain here) at 9 o'clock at night in the pitch black. Nick loved every second of it. I thought we were seconds away from death!

This place is really different - a total culture shock mixed up with so much Western-ness that it is the tiniest bit familiar (if that makes any sense). Tonight, we will explore the night market and then tomorrow we will explore Chiang Mai and then we are off to the islands down south to relax on some beaches.

I hope you are all doing well....

Quick Update

Hi everyone -

Just a quick updated because I wanted to let everyone know that we are just fine and finishing up our Japanese portion of the trip! Japan has been great. It was SO intimidating when we first landed and it rained the first morning we were here. I cannot lie - I wanted to go home. Cold..wet..miserable..and having no idea what people were saying. But once we got our bearings straight and realized that we were doing ok...then I was a lot more relaxed. By the end of today, Nick and I have no trouble making our way around the Tokyo subway/railway systems and getting where we want to go. More details to follow - but some highlights of the trip so far include -
1. Coffee at the Park Hyatt (location of Lost in Translation) - which is a beautiful building with incredible views of Tokyo
2. Discovering a scene straight out of Kane and Lynch as we walked ther streets - it was a special moment for Nick
3. Walking from Shinjuku (Blade Runner) to Harajuku (Kiddyland - the coolest toy store ever) to Shibuya (the crossroads that you see whenever any TV show or movie talks about Tokyo - bustling streets with lots of massive video screens and flashing lights) through Roppongi to Ginza (to the second coolest toy store ever - where Don and Judy - I bought an Amy doll - in honor of Sega) and then home and EXHAUSTED
4. Meeting up with SEGA friends (Shindo-san and Takeuchi-san) and going to an incredible temple in Asakusa and finding out that I have the BEST fortune! (and trying some interesting bean paste candy type thing - Judy your mom would be proud - and eating the most amazing tuna)
5. Akihabra - electronics that go on forever and forever
6. Meandering around the Imperial Palace ground and realizing with horror that we missed one of two days a year that we can actually go inside.
7. Tsujiki fish market - fish of ALL kinds! It was insane and massive and very fishy. But it was FASCINATING

I'm sure I`m missing something.

Ok..now that I have pretty much told you everything we've seen, we are off to walk around Shinjuku at dusk - the red light district - and take in our last evening of Tokyo. I will sign on again from Thailand when we can. In the meantime..happy holidays!

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I Wrote this yesterday and now I am uploading it from the United Lounge in Narita airport. We are off to Bangkok now! Woohooo!