15 days and counting...

Hello there! (this is Carmon speaking)

Two weeks from now we will be spending our last full day in America, scarfing down all foods we will miss and dreading our final goodbyes. We have been very busy traveling to and from Tulsa to see his parents, and we recently took a quick trip down to Louisiana to say goodbye to my grandparents. Whew! The emotions are strong.

While we were in Louisiana we got to Skype with the couple I told you about in our "mansions" blog. Ben and Erica Berry have been living in the same apartment that we will be moving in to. Their time in Japan has come to a close and we will be filling their shoes, so to speak, as we not only move into their apartment, but also to the schools they have been teaching at.

It was so relieving to speak with them about what our positions will be like at our designated schools. As an elementary teacher, Mason's job is to help make the kids comfortable with hearing a foreign language and getting them excited to learn! By the time they get to junior high (where I will be teaching), they will know a few phrases and be prepared to start learning how to write and speak in English. Whew, I can do that!!

Mason doesn't know it yet, but he will be so good at working with the elementary kids. He is comfortable with being silly and is very creative. He will do a great job coming up with educational activities that are engaging.

As for me, I'm not so great at the silly. I like to have fun with the kids, but it takes me a while to get loose and goofy with the little ones. I will be much more comfortable in the junior high setting. I'll spend a lot of my time following along with the students in their text books, and planning activities that help them apply what they are learning. Ben and Erica made us feel much better about things and gave us a new confidence in our ability to teach well.

As for now, this week has many more goodbyes in store. Thursday night our college group at church will take a moment to pray for us, Sunday the church body will give us a send off and I will see my step-family for probably the last time, and there are a few dates in between where we will be saying "ta-ta" to friends/family.

Please be praying for our travels, the people we are going to meet, and our families.

Keys

Keys- something I have a lot of. In fact, I've on more than one occasion been questioned about perspective janitorial service. Despite my array of keys, I am NOT a janitor. But if I were, I'm almost positive I'd be one of those really good looking, MIT math genius janitors.

I can totally connect the dots!

A day ago it occurred to me that very soon and for a brief period of time I, for the first time that I can ever remember, won't have a single key to own. Notta one.

For as long as I can remember I've always had keys. And I'm not just talking about the occasional collection of unnecessary keys that have built up over time. No, for the last year I've claimed as many as 11 keys, all of which were necessary to have on my person.
Car, wife's car, apartment, Tulsa home, trailer hitch, church, work, mailbox, drum key (for tuning), band room and one top secret one I can't tell you about.

mmmhmm

So, there I was, sitting in my car staring at ALL of those keys and realizing that in a few weeks I won't need one of them. Actually, for a brief time on the flight to Tokyo, I'll be in key limbo till I receive the keys to our new mansion.
Keyless! I never new there'd be such a place -even in heaven there's gates.

(Presumably locked) 

All joking aside, the more I thought about it the more sobering it turned out to be.

Those keys aren't just keys... They're symbols or representations of past commitments, relationships, memories, people, places and things. Having a key to something is having the privilege to be opened up to something, whether it be employment, a ride, a safe or home. Keys can be comforting too, in that they affirm our ownership of our possessions. Look, this is my key and that is my car, see? It's proof it belongs to me. Keys, in one sense, give you the right to be there.
Sadly, what I've come to realize is that in deciding to move to Japan, Carmon and I are (in a way) giving up those rights.
When we move, we don't have that option of taking a weekend trip up to Tulsa to visit my parents. Nor can we jump in our car to take a random road trip with my brother in law. The band room will no be expecting my late night wood sheds, and my church will have new interns to lock up the place.

Of course there's an optimistic way of seeing things, too. We aren't just throwing away our lives or anything. We're just...exchanging keys. Trading in for a smaller, more simpler set.

"Noooooo!"

Japan: Where teachers live in mansions

As of this morning, these two Okies know where we'll be teaching in Japan!

Mason will spend most of his week at Ishikawa Elementary School. Every other Tuesday he will teach at a separate Kindergarten/Preschool.

I (This is Carmon by the way. My turn to post) will be teaching at Daigo Junior High School. This is a good thing because the kids will (hopefully) be better with English than Elementary students, but it also makes me nervous because it's a lot easier to win the affection of a second grader than it is a sixth grader.

かわいい
(kawaii)
Japanese for cute

According to Google Maps and a rough idea of where our apartment will be, it is a 26-28 minute walk for Mason and a 16 minute walk for me. Throw in a couple bikes and this will be a piece of cake!

We'll make sure to turn on the "find friends" app. 

As for our apartment, I believe the development is called the "Sinhara Mansions." Well, doesn't that sound spiffy! Turns out, "mansions" in Japan often refer to what we would call a condo. It's generally larger than an "Apato," and is built with more of a long term family friendly use in mind. We have been told that ours is one of the bigger apartments in the program which is a super big blessing because we plan to bunk our family and friends that visit.

We're looking at YOU Stacy and Charissa! 

Our mansion is located near Horihara Sports Park which has a baseball field, ball game field, stadium, and one of the largest gymnasiums in Japan. The park itself is open 24-hours. Now we have no excuse to not exercise! Ben Berry and his wife (the AET's currently in that apartment now) have said that we will only need to buy a couch!! WOOHOO!!! That is so good to hear! That means we will have a bed to sleep in on our first night there and limited shopping to do.

Just don't eat their meat. 

Anyway, Mason and I are going to do our best to keep you updated on how life is going in Japan while we are away. With pictures, videos, and entries we should be able to keep everyone at home informed on how things are going. Please pray for the people we are to meet, our safety while traveling, and success in sharing the gospel. We leave the United States on Thursday, April 11th, arrive Friday the 12th, and start work on Monday the 15th! This is going to be insane.

And just in case we ever wonder why we chose to do this. We will just watch the following video and everything will make sense. 

The Fox and the Hound

qualifier - (qual·i·fi·er) 

- A word or phrase that limits or qualifies the sense of another word or statement.

Like, "The Dark Knight Rises was the best super-hero film of 2012". In this sentence, "super-hero" is used as the qualifier. It allows for "The Dark Knight Rises" to be considered the best film of 2012, so long as we are talking about super-hero films. I would argue that such a sentence needs no qualifier but that's just me.

Best Supporting Actress

Sometimes, 'qualifiers' don't need to be vocalized. Some are just assumed when speaking. Let me give you an example.

The phrase "Everything's bigger in Texas" is often spoken in the lone star state. Taken at face value, this of course isn't true. Not everything is bigger in Texas. For instance, just look at the Allen High School 60-million-dollar football stadium.

Clearly, not the biggest. I believe the 49ers have a 61 million dollar stadium. 

So, the understood qualifier in the phrase "Everything's bigger in Texas" is that "everything" isn't meant in the literal sense. Even though it isn't stated verbally, both Billy-bob and Earl understand that what is really being said is actually something like, "[most things, many things, some things] are bigger in Texas."

The following statement has such qualifiers.

The Fox and the Hound is Disney's most relevant and moral animated film for today's American audience. 

Note: There are two main qualifiers on that... I said, "it is Disney's most relevant and moral animated film." No doubt there are countless other relevant and moral films the company has produced, but none, I shall argue, is as important for children (and adults) to watch then this one. 

And the second qualifier is that I've limited the statement to just animated films... no computer animation or live action here.

I think Disney Pixar has exceeded expectations on how to create beautifully rendered stories while delivering rock solid content to it's audience. 

Toy Story wrestles with the vulnerabilities of losing your identity, being replaced and unused.
The Incredibles dealt with a family who neglected the marital tensions between  husband and wife.
A Bug's Life made an effort to convey the importance of breaking from tradition.
Finding Nemo portrayed the parental struggle to "let go," and...
Wall*E, rather overtly, touched on climate change and the Nation-wide obesity epidemic.
It's safe to say that Pixar always delivers excellent, moral, relevant messages. 

Cars was about exploiting children's innate desire to buy car toys. 

Back to the Fox and the Hound.

I think it's the most relevant Disney animation film for two reasons. 

1. It deals with the universal experience of having to assimilate to what culture tells you to do.

Todd and Copper (the fox and the hound, duh) were best friends. They loved each other. "We'll always be best friends," Todd says, "no matter what." Sadly, after the two spend a season apart from each other they meet with a new-found sense of cultural norms. "He's a hunting dog now" Big Momma (the owl) says, "things have changed." Despite their true feelings, Todd and Copper ultimately abandon their friendship out of obligation. How can a fox and a hound be friends? 

Today, kids are asking the same questions. 

When I was in junior high, the third day of school, a group of boys (the "popular ones") came up to me and told me I needed to hang out with them. "You seem pretty cool" they said, "Be friends with us." Hmm..."This was odd," I thought. Odd because it was a command directed solely at me and not the others I was hanging with already. The group wanted me to make a decision right then and there about who it was I would associate with. In their minds I was a "fox" like them and they wanted to tell me I couldn't be friends with the "hounds." 

This happens so often amongst kids you wouldn't believe. If you're a pretty girl, you're friends with the pretty girls. If you're an athlete, you're friends are supposed to be athletes. If you're in band, you only hang out with band geeks. 

Unless you're a drummer ...then you're totally like the most popular guy ever. 

My High School experience. 

Back to the fox and the hound...

2. It has an optimistic, yet realistic conclusion. 

Unlike most children's movies, this one didn't end with everything being gung-ho and happy. It was an optimistic ending, like I said, but Todd and Copper never ran off into the sunset playing hide and seek. 

"Found you!"

In the conclusion, the two remain friends but only at a distance. The actions the two have taken in the film have consequences that simply don't allow for the shared life they both want. They leave each other to live their own lives. Friends, but friends that must go separate ways.

It's a great movie. Incredibly sad in some places and quite funny at times. Roger Ebert wrote, 

"For all of its familiar qualities, this movie marks something of a departure for the Disney studio, and its movement is in an interesting direction. The Fox and the Hound is one of those relatiely rare Disney animated features that contains a useful lesson for its younger audiences. It's not just cute animals and frightening advetures and a happy ending; it's also a rather thoughful meditation on how society determines our behavior." 

So, for whatever reason, if you've actually ended up reading this post all the way through and need a good kid flick to watch with your niece, nephew, son or daughter... go netflix The Fox and the Hound. 

And after you've watched it. Instantly watch this. 

My Leather Endeavor

My High School lit teacher, Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator, females in a heist and the vast majority of bikers and pilots. This is a group that shares little in common. There is, however, one thing that strings them all together.

That's right, 

Leather Jackets. 

And just recently I got so close to buying one at a local Dillard's that it made me question why I haven't considered one before. Turns out, there is a long, deep subconscious reason why. And thus begins tonights post...

First, let's just get this fact out there. Leather jackets look good. Period. I don't care who you are. I've seen people of all shapes and sizes that, upon sporting leather, have transformed into an entirely new person. For instance, the two shots below were part of a 1992 experiment taken to study the effects of leather-wearing. 

The first picture is of the subject without a leather jacket. Notice too, that he is wearing a jacket, but not a leather one. 

The subject seems rather unpleasant and a bit confused. Typical for non-leather wearers. 

Moments later scientist then provide a leather jacket to the same man -causing an instantaneous reaction.  

They still don't know where she came from. 

Apart from the obvious good-looking nature of the leathered man, the most important thing to notice is the confidence in which leather jackets bring. 

Go watch any action movie. Literally ANY of them. They'll all feature a leathered man. And whether it's just a cultural thing or not, us American boys grow up watching good guys kick the bad guys butt, all while wearing you know what. So looking back, I think it's safe to say that I've always wanted a leather jacket, but I just didn't know I wanted one. That is till last week when Carmon and I went to Dillard's to look at jackets. 

Now, our move to Japan is coming up soon, and the AET's (Assistant English Teachers) there said that April is surprisingly cold. So, being that everything in Japan is 4 times the price here, we thought we should take advantage of the coat sales at Dillard's, especially since my $80 Target jacket is falling apart only after a year of use! 

Pronounced "moron-a"

The "Sale"

Aside from the apparent lack of build-strenght, I've enjoyed my Target coat. Heavy, black, wool, interior and exterior pockets... add a scarf and I'm as metro as they come. 

*Add mug to increase trendiness. 

So when I went into Dillard's, that's really all I was wanting. Just a replacement of the one I've got. And like the heading suggests, there was a sale. 50% off the lowest marked price. Keep in mind we're on the tail end of winter and at that time they had been marked down like two or three times, which means if we were to buy one of the jackets now ...we'd still be getting ripped off. BUT... at least we're not getting as ripped off as we would if the sale weren't happening (or so my wife puts it). I sort of see the justification. Sort of. Regardless, we're there, we're looking for coats, we'll spend the money. 

Then, all of the sudden, Carmon walks up with something. 

Something intimidating. 

Something rugged, sleek and Sexy. 

Something, that at one time... moo'd. 

T'was a leather jacket.

As I've said already, I didn't, nor have I ever really wanted a leather jacket. But for some reason this one was beckoning me. I dismissed the idea at first. But as the night went on, I found my mind wandering back to it. I tried to ignore it, then I fought it... but as I strolled passed the countless aisles and racks of clearance coats and price-cut parka's... I knew... I knew that I had to go back. 

So I did. 

And as I slid my arms through those cold satin lined sleeves a bond was formed. A bond unlike any thing today...  More like the days of old, when dragon and slayer formed a truce, so too did the leather and I. 

"You're not by chance a medium, are you?" 

Reflecting in the mirror, there I stood, leather jacket and all. It felt good of course, but the real kicker was how well it fit. Not too loose but not too tight. My new emergent belly seemed to disappear behind the cool dark brown hide. Whether through allusion or miracle, this jacket gave the appearance I was in shape. I modeled it for my wife, and I could tell by the look on her face that she too thought it was a winner. 

"Why had I never looked into leather before?" I thought, "It's soooo nice!" 

The more I wore it in the store the heavier it got. Not in it's weight though... but in it's burden. Like Frodo carrying the ring, I was beginning to feel the responsibility and expectations that comes with a leather jacket.  Do I have what it takes? 

I can't fight. 

I can't drive above 45 on a motorcycle without freaking out.

I can't fly a plane or dodge bullets. 

Reality, my friends, was sinking in. If I can't do any of those things then I don't deserve a leather jacket. But then I thought, "maybe the reason I can't do those things is because I don't have a leather jacket." Yes! That's it. Surely once I get one, those things will come to fruition. Surely. I started to justify the buy in my head. But there was one problem...

The Price

Marked down three times and half off that price it still came to something like $150. It looked good. But as I started to check out I was thinking practicalities. Will this awesome looking peace of clothing keep me warm in freezing, rainy, snowy Japanese weather? 

Gulp. 

I couldn't bring myself to get it. As much as I wanted it I just couldn't do it. What I need is something like what I had. The Metro, not the moto. So, that night, even after all that bonding... I left the jacket there, unable to convince myself of adoption. 

65% off my butt!

Days later and the darned thing is still on my mind! By this time, I've spoken with my mother about said jacket and weaseled my way into her checkbook. She willingly offered to help me with my leather endeavor in which case I accepted. Upon further queries upon Dillard's website I found that the 50% off sale had changed to a 65% off sale. It was a sign from the almighty himself! 

"Great savings I declare!"

Well, come to find out, that 65% off was really 65% off original price. The prior sale was 50% off lowest marked price. Ultimately that means I would have had to pay $50 more for the 65% off sale! WHAT!?!?! Who makes a sale go up? I'll tell you who... DILLARDS! No way in the world was I going to pay that extra $50! 

It was a bummer to say the least, but hey, that's what you get when you read God out of context.  

So all that to say that I never bought the jacket. 

BUT... there is still hope. 

For as I was walking out of Dillard's that night a salesman told me the original sale would be back on this thursday. 

Am I going back? 

What do you think?

For I can still hear that jacket calling my name. 

Reminding me of the covenant we made that one fateful night. 

I dream of the day we will be reunited, and I hope 'tis soon.  

Ignorance is(n't) bliss

Ok, so there's not too many exciting things that have happened in my life this past week. I mean, as far as I'm permitted to reveal on this blog at least. Theoretically, I definitely could have saved the world and you not have ever even known one thing about it. For all you know, I've got connections with the MIB.

I'd be in the pic but somebody had to take it. 

Sadly though, I didn't save the world and had a fairly normal and event-free monday through friday. So, I thought I'd stray from the norm and write about something a little different. I'm just spitballing here. Totally random...how about...

Ignorance is bliss (at least in the movies)

For example, if the MIB existed (they do) and the movies (documentaries) were for reals (they are) then that would mean you and I would be (are) in complete bliss concerning the state of the Universe. We go about our lives totally unaware of the impending doom we are certain to face and all that stands between us and total annihilation is the fresh prince and Tommy Lee... or if you live in the Marvel universe - Hawk Eye.

Because he totally saved the world.

In the movies, us civilians are always oblivious to the catastrophes headed our way. Of course as the audience we know all along that the Titanic does in fact sink, or that those dinosaurs just wont be content behind their fences, and we certainly wouldn't be ok with Bond grabbing the correct set of nuke codes in the prologue. We love conflict, we love drama, we love stories that stack our hero's up against the most unsurmountable odds.
Why?
Well, first off, it would just be boring as ever if that weren't the case.

"Houston, we totally don't have a problem." 

Secondly, it makes for good movie material. You can't have a story without some conflict or tension, and the more a film or book can build that up the better. And the best part of it all is that after the movie's over we can just get up and walk out. We aren't left with the devastating effects of the movie's reality. It is, after all, just a movie. When Earth's last hope was cast upon the likes of Bruce Willis and his rag-tag oil drilling team, you and I didn't have to suffer through all the PTSD that would have inevitably followed for most of civilization.

Speaking of Armageddon...

This last week an asteroid (lovingly named DA14) big enough to wipe out New York City came within 17,000 miles of our planet. Doesn't seem close until you realize that most of our satellites are in orbits further away than that. Ok, so no big deal you might say. It came close, but we've known it was coming for years and years and years and we knew it wouldn't hit us and ..... WHOA!

Out of nowhere another space rock slams into our atmosphere completely unannounced, not invited, and very matter-of-factly. How rude.

Ya. That exact same day DA14 was passing by our planet, mother Russia got a little surprise.
And when I say little I really mean 7 to 12 thousand ton rock little. The comet, one completely separate an unassociated with the other huge asteroid, exploded and broke apart in our atmosphere before it could hit the Earth. It wasn't anything to be too concerned about, however it was big enough for the shock of the explosion alone to shatter glass windows and send over 1,000 people to the hospital.

No doubt this is a rare occurrence, but it goes to show just how vulnerable we are. How ironic that on the one day that so many eyes were turned to the skies to view DA12, a day that should have been proof of humanities ability to be "in the know" about such things, a day that we all knew, in a sense, there's no need to worry about it, that same day - another rock took us by surprise.

I'd go so far as to say that the level of our  ignorance isn't as dissimilar to the movies as we'd like to think. Honestly, I'd say it's worse, because our ignorance is almost a willing ignorance. What do I mean?

I guarantee you I could ask 10 average, normal Okies who won the Thunder game last night and 8 out of 10 would be able to tell me instantly. They'd probably even go on to quote some statistics and special moments, too. Now, ask those same 10 people which country just went forth with their third Nuclear test and odds are you wont have the same fervent regurgitation of facts. I'm not ripping on Okies here either. It's just us as a people in general. America. It's not that we don't like being "in the know" about the rest of the planet. It's just that we really aren't bothered that much if we aren't.

"Did you hear about Syria invading..."
"SHHH! Pawn Stars back on!" 

First VIDEO blog & my trip to Minneapolis

What do you get when you combine plaid, apple products, messenger bags and a love for God's word? 

That's right... The Desiring God Pastor's Conference! 

This last week Ryan, Matt and I (and every other Bridgeway intern) were invited to attend the annual conference for pastors (or pastors-to-be) put on by Desiring God ministries. The three of us drove there because we lack a certain monetary substance that is required to board planes nowa' days. Thankfully, we had a really nice car to get us there, and the twelve hour trip was actually pretty fun. 

Sucker. 

Anyhow, I brought my camera along so I could try putting together a video blog (Vlog?).

I think I screwed up the audio but hey, it's my first one so don't expect to see it at any film festivals.