Hubby was finally promoted to Lieutenant Colonel this month. Actually he started getting paid for his new rank on the 1st of the month but didn't "pin" it on until just before Christmas. He wanted to wait until after most folks from work were back from a joint exercise up "north of Tokyo." I know he despises being the center of attention, preferring to be behind the camera rather than in front. (I share the same feeling...always have) So it was nice to bear witness to the respect others have for him. He didn't expect so many people to be there to watch his promotion, especially since he didn't send the general "all-hands" email out to everyone that others might do. You know the type...they usually send one to EVERYONE and even go so far as saying WHO is doing the promotion, i.e. "General So-and-So". Hubby's not like that and takes great pains to avoid it. (He was even glad that he was limited to less than 6 guests at his last promotion ceremony because it was in a highly secure location, the Defense Intelligence Agency...)
It's rare that anyone sees either of us in our military dress uniforms. Hubby has a TON of chest candy (like the little pin for jumping out of perfectly good aircraft). I'm really quite proud of him and his accomplishments. Since he normally wears the "new" Army easy-to-care-for ACU, it was nice to see him dressed up. As for moi, the only times in recent years when I've worn my service dress blue uniform was for the winter uniform inspections, so this was definitely a special event. (I've usually been in working or wash khakis.) I'd post a photo of the promotion ceremony but I think Hubby would not want that out for all to see... it's bad enough that I'm even writing about it here...
Friday, December 28, 2007
Monday, December 10, 2007
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, HUBBY
We just celebrated 2 significant dates this past month. We met 7 years ago on the 5th of December and married 4 years ago on the 6th of December. We had a wonderful dinner at Wellington's restaurant in the New Sanno Hotel. As always, the staff at the Wellington's were utterly professional and attentive. We enjoy seeing the same folks & catching up, much like we are at the Army Navy Club in DC: Iwin, our host; Saito-san, who is always "genki" and has a great twinkle in his eye; Jaybee, a fellow Filipino, who reminds me so much of several of my cousins; Franz, who's Indonesian, who charms us with stories about his "naughty" 5 year old son who we know isn't naughty at all, but is just being 5. We ate at Wellington's two evenings in a row. We've begun to think of the New Sanno a lot like a cruise ship. I can get my nails done there. We can hit the gym in the morning before breakfast. We can go shopping. We can just hang out if we wanted or we can wander around town. We love heading up there for a weekend!
In this case, we've both been so busy with work the past few weeks that we just vegged. We're back to almost the beginning of our househunting search so we spent some time going over the San Antonio areas. Although we could afford a big house with a big yard and so on, we don't want to live beyond our means. So, we're considering buying a place "just big enough" for us and we will look into buying other places as investments.
Okay, I started reading financial advice books recently. I'm gulping down Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad, Poor Dad and highlighting different areas that might come in handy in the future. Note: I've subscribed to Tim Ferris' blog, the 4 hour work week, and he recently posted clever ways to take notes, good notes. I've started indexing my highlighted areas of Rich Dad, Poor Dad based on Tim Ferris' ideas. Since both of my parents have recently suffered severe illnesses, I've been preoccupied with the thought of being responsible for their medical care in the future as well as the welfare of our future children and not being able to do either well. While money can't buy happiness, it can ease or prevent financial burden.
While we are far from rich, we are also far from poor. We have good, stable jobs and we live within our means, not beyond. We share the goal to live comfortably enough to allow us to travel outside the U.S. often. Now, you may think that we travel expensively as well as extensively. I'll be honest: we have traveled luxuriously and rather enjoyed it! We took a 10 day cruise through the Caribbean for our honeymoon and took another 10 day cruise around French Polynesia for our 1st anniversary. We met some wonderful people on the cruises but we've kept in touch with more folks from the trips where "roughing it" was the norm.
In this case, we've both been so busy with work the past few weeks that we just vegged. We're back to almost the beginning of our househunting search so we spent some time going over the San Antonio areas. Although we could afford a big house with a big yard and so on, we don't want to live beyond our means. So, we're considering buying a place "just big enough" for us and we will look into buying other places as investments.
Okay, I started reading financial advice books recently. I'm gulping down Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad, Poor Dad and highlighting different areas that might come in handy in the future. Note: I've subscribed to Tim Ferris' blog, the 4 hour work week, and he recently posted clever ways to take notes, good notes. I've started indexing my highlighted areas of Rich Dad, Poor Dad based on Tim Ferris' ideas. Since both of my parents have recently suffered severe illnesses, I've been preoccupied with the thought of being responsible for their medical care in the future as well as the welfare of our future children and not being able to do either well. While money can't buy happiness, it can ease or prevent financial burden.
While we are far from rich, we are also far from poor. We have good, stable jobs and we live within our means, not beyond. We share the goal to live comfortably enough to allow us to travel outside the U.S. often. Now, you may think that we travel expensively as well as extensively. I'll be honest: we have traveled luxuriously and rather enjoyed it! We took a 10 day cruise through the Caribbean for our honeymoon and took another 10 day cruise around French Polynesia for our 1st anniversary. We met some wonderful people on the cruises but we've kept in touch with more folks from the trips where "roughing it" was the norm.
Sunday, December 2, 2007
GO NAVY BEAT ARMY, 38-3
Okay, the game's over, the crowd's have long left the stadium but the cheers and jeers will continue... at least until next year. Navy 38, Army 3. Of course, it's all in good fun because truth be told, some of these young men will work alongside their opponents in the future, especially as more joint operations come into existence. This is a good thing for us since we're our own "Joint Operations." Hubby went to West Point through his first 2 years in the late 80s and has been in the Army since graduating from Auburn so he's an easy target for 2 annual football traditions: the Army-Navy game and the Alabama-Auburn game. I was raised in Texas, where football rules (although basketball and baseball are also very big in the metro areas). I'm also prior-enlisted, having taken the long route to finish my undergraduate and graduate studies. Therefore, since I'm not an Academy ring-knocker, the annual Army-Navy game really didn't take note until December 2001, one year after we met.
We flew down south to visit Hubby's family on the weekend of the game. While we sat peacefully in his parents' living room, eye glued to the boob tube, I noted that hey, he's not sitting by me and hey, he's not even holding my hand today! Thus the school rivalry extended into our relationship for one single day of the year. I'm proud to say that I did get him to hold my hand one year, 2003... I made certain that our wedding day was the same day as the game. (The only folks who didn't make our wedding were either already deployed or blocked by the 8 inches of snow that fell overnight.) In fact, after all the guests had gone home or to their hotels, we sat in our wedding garb finally eating our supper in the Army Navy Club bar in Washington, DC and watched as Hubby's beloved Black Knights lost to the Navy Mids.
In honor of the game, here are specific fond memories from the last few years...- 2001: Cheering "GO NAVY BEAT ARMY" with each touchdown or field goal at the future in-laws house... yes, I risked sleeping on the back porch but it was worth it!
- 2003: Getting my bridesmaids to post a "GO NAVY" sign on Hubby's back on the way to the reception, just before we went through the traditional sabre arch.
- Filming a TV spot on the Kitty Hawk flight deck in 2005: I was the only female out on that frigid morning and they asked me to toss a football out to the camera for our spot. How cool is that? We took about 5 takes and in 1 of them, I actually hit the camera with the football (great aim!). I heard this spot was shown in the pre-games.
Since I love the Annapolis area, I hope our children will consider the Naval Academy over West Point should military service be an option. However, I don't think that will be an easy argument to win with Hubby...West Point really holds a special place in his heart.
Cool crayon craft project for little people
I literally stumbled on this great craft project for "Crayon Nibbles". We have so many friends with toddlers and I fear going out of control on new baby gifts. I think I'll have to try this out before the end of the year. This project is so creative and simple to do! Heck, the website is just a fun one to visit! The site is called Crafty Daisies...CHECK IT OUT!
Lodging hints for Kamakura area
I periodically check my virtualtourist.com account (which is sorely in need of updating) and found an email from AUGUST requesting hotel suggestions for a trip to Kamakura in April for their group of 3 adults & 2 children (1 baby). It's a good thing that our British pals, Paul & Karen, with their 4 yr old & 15 month old daughters visited Japan during their Easter holiday. As a result, I've become familiar with lodging options in this little enclave of Paradise (Kamakura area). The following is an excerpt of my reply back to the requestor. (Note: I don't mention love hotels in this reply because of the group mix. However, in a pinch, couples can stay there "all night" usually after 10 pm. Pals Barry & Nadia ended up doing that when they got stuck in Kamakura on a holiday weekend and we were still up in Tokyo.)
There are a few hotels in the area and a couple of houses w/rooms (backpacker friendly). What level of comfort are you looking for? If you want to be by the beach, there are only 3 hotels I know that are across the street from the beach: Kamakura Prince Hotel (about $200USD/night), Kamakura Park Hotel (same as Prince), and a smaller hotel further up the beach whose name escapes me at present,although I drive by it nearly every day to/from work. April is a very busy month here as it's cherry blossom season AND school's out so most hotels are booked and the trains are jam-packed, especiallythe EnoDen line which runs along the beach from central Kamakura to Fujisawa City. If you can get into the Enospa on Enoshima island, it's not a bad deal and not too far from the train station (about a mile?). The website for the hotel follows http://www.enospa.jp/ and for a quick review from travel and leisure mag, read http://www.travelandleisure.com/hotels/enospa-fujisawa-city-hotel.
If you want a more traditional stay at a ryokan, this website gives a good selection of area ryokan. Be fair warned though: most of these little places may/may not have English speakers taking reservations if you call so you'll have to be patient. If there's an email address, you'd be better off to use a travel agent. http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/db/kamakura/index.htm.
My 2 cents: if you prefer Western style rooms and don't mind spending a bit more than other areas futher inland, I recommend the Prince Hotel or the Park Hotel. Sorry the Park hotel link is only in Japanese, but google-ing will give you English websites for reservations. Although it's not in the heart of downtown Kamakura, it's by the beach and is an easy 3km or 1.8 mile walk to what's considered "Kamakura" by some (where the main shrines and temples are located). The Prince hotel also provides some transportation to the nearest train station. When we have parties, some of our friends are coming from other cities like Kawasaki or Tokyo and this is where they have stayed.
The closest station is Shichirigahama station, which is 3 stations from Hase (HAH-say), where 2 popular tourist spots are located: the Great Buddha and Hasedera Kannon or Hase-Kannon. It's also only 3 stops in the other direction to Enoshima City & Enoshima Island, anotherf avorite tourist spot (the aquarium here is good for the little ones although the camelback hike to get across the island is NOT fun but worth the trouble!). Also, if you find it too difficult to find appropriate lodging in Kamakura, you have the whole of the Shonan bay area to seek as well as the Hakone area too,which is only about an hour by train from any of the stops on the EnoDen Line.
If you've visited virtualtourist.com, there are very few hotels/ryokans in Kamakura itself. (FYI: The one in Hayama is NOT, repeat, NOT close to Kamakura if traveling by car, bus or train. You'd have to switch from the train in Zushi to a bus to get anywhere in Hayama and if driving, you'd have to figure out where the parking lots are. However, it's a neat little area to visit. One of our best friends lived on the beach there and we always joked it would be faster for us to get to her place if we had a boat or jet skis). Also, check out JTB's website if you haven't already. They are one of the biggest tour companies in Japan and have a US website. (We have used them for event tickets like for sumo and pals used them for trips to Kyoto, etc)
Happy Traveling!
There are a few hotels in the area and a couple of houses w/rooms (backpacker friendly). What level of comfort are you looking for? If you want to be by the beach, there are only 3 hotels I know that are across the street from the beach: Kamakura Prince Hotel (about $200USD/night), Kamakura Park Hotel (same as Prince), and a smaller hotel further up the beach whose name escapes me at present,although I drive by it nearly every day to/from work. April is a very busy month here as it's cherry blossom season AND school's out so most hotels are booked and the trains are jam-packed, especiallythe EnoDen line which runs along the beach from central Kamakura to Fujisawa City. If you can get into the Enospa on Enoshima island, it's not a bad deal and not too far from the train station (about a mile?). The website for the hotel follows http://www.enospa.jp/ and for a quick review from travel and leisure mag, read http://www.travelandleisure.com/hotels/enospa-fujisawa-city-hotel.
If you want a more traditional stay at a ryokan, this website gives a good selection of area ryokan. Be fair warned though: most of these little places may/may not have English speakers taking reservations if you call so you'll have to be patient. If there's an email address, you'd be better off to use a travel agent. http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/db/kamakura/index.htm.
My 2 cents: if you prefer Western style rooms and don't mind spending a bit more than other areas futher inland, I recommend the Prince Hotel or the Park Hotel. Sorry the Park hotel link is only in Japanese, but google-ing will give you English websites for reservations. Although it's not in the heart of downtown Kamakura, it's by the beach and is an easy 3km or 1.8 mile walk to what's considered "Kamakura" by some (where the main shrines and temples are located). The Prince hotel also provides some transportation to the nearest train station. When we have parties, some of our friends are coming from other cities like Kawasaki or Tokyo and this is where they have stayed.
The closest station is Shichirigahama station, which is 3 stations from Hase (HAH-say), where 2 popular tourist spots are located: the Great Buddha and Hasedera Kannon or Hase-Kannon. It's also only 3 stops in the other direction to Enoshima City & Enoshima Island, anotherf avorite tourist spot (the aquarium here is good for the little ones although the camelback hike to get across the island is NOT fun but worth the trouble!). Also, if you find it too difficult to find appropriate lodging in Kamakura, you have the whole of the Shonan bay area to seek as well as the Hakone area too,which is only about an hour by train from any of the stops on the EnoDen Line.
If you've visited virtualtourist.com, there are very few hotels/ryokans in Kamakura itself. (FYI: The one in Hayama is NOT, repeat, NOT close to Kamakura if traveling by car, bus or train. You'd have to switch from the train in Zushi to a bus to get anywhere in Hayama and if driving, you'd have to figure out where the parking lots are. However, it's a neat little area to visit. One of our best friends lived on the beach there and we always joked it would be faster for us to get to her place if we had a boat or jet skis). Also, check out JTB's website if you haven't already. They are one of the biggest tour companies in Japan and have a US website. (We have used them for event tickets like for sumo and pals used them for trips to Kyoto, etc)
Happy Traveling!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
