Contents may have shifted during flight...

My biggest challenge about journaling, or in this case, blogging, is trying to figure out where to start. For me, writing doesn't just come naturally, especially when it boils down to documenting the minutiae of my boring day-to-day. It takes an "Aha!" or a "Wow," or an "OMG" moment to really get the words a-spewing.

I spent so much time telling all my friends and family about my future adventures. "I'm thinking about keeping a blog while I'm in Japan...Oh yeah. I'm gonna start a blog... Be on the lookout for my blog, y'all" Much like the packing and mental preparation, however, the blog thing didn't manifest itself until the eleventh hour.

Although it would seem nice to start everyone off with the packing and preparation phase, I find it unnecessary to convey my experiences. After all, you all were there. You should have a pretty good idea as to what I was doing while still stateside. If you weren't, I have a good feeling you could imagine. Selling my truck, canceling my bills, sayonara parties. The works.I'm bringing you all into the story at the Houston airport:

Oh, and the adventure begins again...

I made my way to my seat- 35E. Center seat of the center section of the plane. Not optimal, but out of my control. As I approached the row, I skimmed my field of vision for a place to put my carry-on bag. There appeared to be a compartment readily open just past my row. Score. I lowered the handle of the bag and hoisted it into the air, wheels first, like they always say. "Nope," I thought. "This isn't gonna fit. Surely it must go the other way."

I tried again, but no dice. "Well, maybe if I move some of this like that over here, then take this stranger's tote bag and put it like thi..." Then, I saw him out of my peripheral vision. It sounds like the beginning of a lovely romance story, but it's far from it. Standing behind me in line was a man who looked like he was in his mid-thirites of presumed Japanese descent, mean-muggin.



Two things occurred to me:
1- He was probably getting annoyed, and...
2- The people behind him in line were probably getting annoyed.

I flashed him an awkward smile and shyly muttered, "Sorry this is taking so long."

"Yeah," he replied. Did he not understand English and was just trying to be polite and stoic, or did he fully understand English and was just letting me know his feeling of discontent? The tone of his voice sent me into a tizzy. A normal operating Jimmy would have admitted defeat, stepped out of the aisle as to let him pass, and searched for the next available overhead storage bin. At this moment, though, I wasn't operating normally. I was faulty: sleepless, anxious, and overwhelmed at how large and crowded that big plane was.

So, what do I do? I panic, of course. I keep on trying to complete the same improbable task. A few endless moments pass. Still- bag not fitting, fellow passenger still waiting. I stop, set the bag down, and stand there like an idiot. I even extended my arms and turned my palms upward as to give the universal gesture for "What am I supposed to do?" You know what I'm talking about. I didn't even move until another JET told me to step aside and let him pass. I ended up getting assistance from the helpful flight attendant who would later become a chatting buddy the thirteen hour flight.

Fact- Dream Girls is a perfect in-flight movie, even if you have seen it millions of times.
Fact- Eating at Fogo de Chao 36 hours before taking an international flight is not enough time to safely avoid a meat induced case of traveller's constipation.
Fact- Not having paperwork ready at customs in Narita can lead to an embarrassing gaijin moment.

This whole Japan thing is going to be a wild ride, and I hope my blog doesn't flop. Maybe it'll be entertaining, witty perhaps. It could also go the route of being boring and over-anecdotal. Either way, it will be just a sneak peek into my life as an English teacher on the JET Program. Imperfect but real, I introduce the ramblings of a dreaded gaijin.