How time flies...

So tomorrow , Sept 20th, will be month number 4 for me being here in Saipan. It is funny how I feel like I haven been here longer, yet how time flies...

I am now feeling comfortable in my classes. Even have made some friends there. I share more than one class with at least 6 people, so its nice to have familiar faces around.

Today it has been rainy all day. I woke up to Tasi barking at the thunder. He gets pretty scared of it, and though it rains almost every other day here, we rarely get thunder and lightening. I miss thunderstorms. Though I have been keeping my fingers crossed that we will go untouched by any big storms. Many have been hitting China, which is good for us, but not good for them. Especially with the landslides they are having right now!

Saipan is beginning to feel like home to me now. I have always felt comfortable here, but now I am beginning to feel like this is yet another home for me.

Jan and I have now moved on to not only feeding dogs but now cats. We have two grown cats and this cute lil black and white kitten down in the parking area. I want to just pick them all up and bring them upstairs. Every time I mention it, Jan gives me a look like "I dare you".... hmph I can save the kitten if I want to hehe

I cant believe how fast this year has gone. Jan and I are talking about the possibilities of what to do for Christmas this year. Going home is probably out of the picture since its hella expensive.

Well, im going to wrap it up. While everyone at home sleeps, Jan and I are going to pay a few bills, check the mail, and enjoy the rest of our Tuesday!

Its that time of year

So this morning I woke, threw on some outside clothes, leashed up tasi boy and walked out the door to let him do him morning business of peeing on our car tire. Most mornings its already hot and once I step out I'm usually already forming sweat beads on my back. But today was different. The wind was cool. Almost like the end of september can be at home. The sun is still shining through but that wind was just amazing. I think tasi was even surprised because when it was ready to go in he punked me into thinking he had to go number two. And after a few minutes I realized his deep black eyes were closed in the wind. I'm such a sucker. Or he is just hella good at being all cute and getting what he wants.

One thing that was always on the back of my mind was the thought of "Am I going to miss fall/winter?" The answer to that is and will always be, YES. Don't get me wrong. Being able to wake almost 6 days of the week to bright blue skies, a low hot sun, and clouds that seem close enough to touch is pretty amazing. This is something that never gets old to me.

I am going on 4 months here this month and its weird because one part of me can't believe I have been here this long and the other part of me feels like I know this place. Its so strangly awesome to be uprooted to a place you have no way of preparing for but getting there and feeling like you have been here before. This place is somewhere I will tell people for the rest of my life to come and visit at least once. I would love to see the islands here, but I don't think that's going to happen.

Well I'm gonna wrap it up. I'm going to finish my coffee, get jan ready for work, and come home and do some class work. Or better yet, maybe ill take tasi and my books to the park.
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Blog Chats

So it is coming to an end of my 3rd week in classes. I really am enjoying school. I told Jan that I am focusing my mind in on all A's! I know I can do it and I know I WILL!!

Saipan weather lately has been beautiful! Sunny days, hot sun, yet the breeze is cool. I wish we could be laying out on the beach right now or out on some adventure, but I have another class in 2 hours. Maybe tomorrow..

I will admit that a part of me has started to think about how the weather might be back home in a month or two. Cool fall weather kicking in soon... but here it will be hot still haha... It makes me feel like summer is constant here. The funny thing is though, I dont mind it. I was laying down on the couch this morning and looked at my feet and I actually have a nice lil tan line from my reef flip flops haha its always the little things....

I know this one is short but Im going to go enjoy my few hours I have with jan and tasi boy... I will admit it sucks that when she has off from work I have class and when I have the weekends off shes working... but, its what we do... and sometimes, you just gotta do what you gotta do...

Butterflies Gone Wild Family Affairs

So, for the first time Friday I was going to be meeting one of Jan's brothers, Gerald and his family! When I got the call my belly started to flutter around like mad with nervousness. Over a year and a half I have only talked on the phone with any of Jans family, and that was 2 of her sisters actually. So this was something I was very excited about. Jan was able to take off work so that we could spend time with them. They had their twin boys with them who are so polite and cute and entertaining! We drove them around the island and got to have an awesome dinner with them at the Hyatt where they were staying. We shared so many laughs and stories. Patty got her nails done. That was our "girl" time. And that night at dinner we found her getting down with the band that was playing. All i remember is one of the boys looking at Gerry saying "Daddy, look at what your wife is doing" Cracked me up! And to top it off, we got the band to also sing happy birthday to Gerry. They live in Guam, and I hope that we get to go see them

soon! Family is something that I cherish, and thats something I have to thank MY family for! No matter what, you should always be there for one another. I have already considered them as a part of my family now! And I hope that is mutual! :-)

So now I am back to being a student, and somehow it feels great. After I went to Cortiva in NJ and had to take and pass classes like Anatomy & Physiology, Kienseology (or muscles), Business all of which in 6 months instead of a year, I have had a lot more confidence in myself when it comes to being a student. I left Cortiva with a 3.8 GPA and a built up self esteem. So now, yes, I am in fact that student whom is always sitting at the front. I even try to arrive extra early to make sure i get a front seat, though here, its like Im usually the only person in the front anyway.

So I declared my Major. Teacher in Special Education. The funny thing is, teaching has been something in the back of my heart and mind since I was little. And the even funnier thing is, without Cortiva I would have never really known that I have a passion to work with children with mental and physical disabilities. Even Autism was really introduced to me at Cortiva, when I decided to do a report on it for my class. Though my report was actually more on the different therapies you can do with a child with Autism, its almost like, that was just a small part of what I am supposed to do in my future.

So, this semester I am taking 4 classes, which add up to 13 semester hours. 2 classes a day M-Th and one evening class F. Not bad actually. Perfect for me.

First there is Math. Contemporary Math actually. Its more like learning and making your own strategies that can actually be used in real life. Like forming a rout for a postman so it lowers cost and increases profit. Those sort of, I didnt understand till now, sorta things. My Teacher is from the islands. Whether it be Hawaii, or CNMI I dont know. But all I do know is he is funny and smiley, and does a pretty good job at breaking things down for you. I am the only Caucasian in actually ANY of my classes. So, I have gone from being majority to minority, and honestly, I believe everyone should have to do that at some point in their life. Just to be clear that there are so many other kinds of people on this earth, and they too, are only humans like us.

I also have a Public Speaking class. Which I like. I can use the things I learned back in my drama days at Stuart hall for this. Though I still get nervous when I have to get in front of people and talk, I am learning to realize, its just talking. My teacher is Caucasian, but I believe she said shes been working here maybe 16 years? Very laid back. Nice lady. She seems to know and understand the culture here very well, which is nice to see. Every day she has us work with a partner, which I know is so we can meet the people in our class. Most of the students in that class are local girls and a couple local boys. I did have a funny guy from, I believe Korea sitting behind me. He was nice and we joked around a little on the group work. Its nice to be somewhere that I can be me, and make jokes, and not be looked at like Im some twenty eyed Medusa or something. Anyways....

Then there is my Political Science class.... "Principles of Democratic Institutions"..... *blank look, which then turns into a scared look, which then morphs into the oh shit look* I have never been good with history or political classes. Why? I am not sure. Maybe its a little things called apathy I might have over politics, but it has always been the class I did the worst in. This class is bigger. My teacher is like someone you would think to find in a movie or a book. He is 62 I believe and looks 43. Makes me wonder if living here slows down the aging process. He definitely knows his stuff in politics. Past, present, and he seems to think , the future. He is very proudly a republican, which is fiinnnneeeee but he does sort of teach as a republican, instead of being a political teacher, and allowing us to think our own things. But like I said, he def knows his stuff!

Then my class on Friday evenings is my Disabilities in Society class... but, our teacher didn't show last night. So, what does Lauren do? She jokes at the class about the "He's got 15 minutes, then we run" which everyone laughs, gets quiet for a second to think, "well thats true, the white girl might be on to something", and then we all get started on the count down. I know Im really going to love that class!! So far, it was only myself and 5 others. 4 women and one man. All of which are older, and I enjoy that. They know how to work and play, but come out smarter in the long run. So, I am excited to get started in that class.... next week I guess ha.

You know, most of my classes, there are at least 5 different nationalities. Korean, Chinese, Japanese, Philippine, and Micronesian or from the Pacific Islands. And the great thing is, I feel the most at home when i am surrounded by diversity. I have never known why, but I felt this even back in high school. Coming from an elementary school of 99% white and 1% black, (though I hate these labels because I know even with me, I am not white, but more pasty colored.. ) it was nice when I went to a more mixed school. That was just the beginning though. When I went off to Stuart hall Boarding school for Drama, I was then faced with meeting people I only read about in books back home. Germany, China, Japan, India, South Africa, Korea... maybe more but thats just where close friends of mine were from. I thrive in diversity. I thrive on learning about culture and religion and customs. Here, on the Islands, there are so many! Especially with the older generations. One day, once I learn a bit more, I will post them here...

I want to end this by saying:

Never say that you are too shy or to scared to do the things you want to do. Never allow language, or location, or distance keep you from being happy, and going places you wish to see. Yes, it can be scary to think of the CHANGE in surroundings, but, that change is knowledge. Learning to communicate with someone of a different language helps you with learning how to bring it back to the basics. Going somewhere far away, makes you realize that yes, you love your family and your home, but damnit, you are able to stand on your own two feet. And location... do you know the nearest walmart or real honest true western store except for the expensive duty free here on Saipan, is Guam? Dont allow fear of change to keep you from moving somewhere or even visiting. Go somewhere that the necessities might not be as attainable. Why? You learn to figure things out. You learn to work with what you have. You learn to appreciate things you had back home.

Many people take hard situations, (and I am as guilty as anyone) and turn them into negativity. But, we all have to take a breath, and make the best of what we can out of it instead! Keep your head up, and your abs in, and walk in the situation ready to get the most out of it. Every thing we fear, then get past, and learn from, is one thing more than what we had the day before. Strength.

Saipan Tribune::

""Public education officials unpacked yesterday crates after crates of 5,200 brand new laptops that will be given to the Commonwealth's secondary students in private and public high schools.

Education Commissioner Dr. Rita A. Sablan, along with school principals and program managers, gathered at the system's Lower Base office to witness the opening of the newly delivered items.

“This is making technology accessible to our students in the secondary level so that they can access the information superhighway. Because we want them to reach out and know what's happening out there in the world and in the community, allowing them access to this electronic equipment.will raise a very important awareness level for them,” said Sablan.

She said the laptops-Latitude 2100 netbooks from Dell Corp.-will be given to incoming 7th to 12th graders in all public and private schools.""

Jan and I were eating dinner last night and saw this on the news! I was amazed! It is awesome to see how they really do try their hardest here to make sure the kids have the best education possible.

Im sitting here listening to the rain, thanking the earth for the cool wind that is washing over me, and just thinking about things. Jan had to wake at 4am so she and tasi are sleeping. Its so cute to see them when they fall asleep together.

Life here has become the norm for me. The heat is something I dont even think about. Just comes naturally to get used to being sweaty and showering 4 times a day. I dont think I will ever get bored with the surprise of closing my eyes while Jan puts some sort of new local food in my mouth for me to try. We went to this small building that I have passed by many times a day, and she sent me in to buy 6 doughnuts. I was thinking to myself #1 we dont need 6 of them and #2 we wont be able to eat 6! I opened the door to the right. There were two there and the door to the left was for eating in, and the door to the right was for take out. I walk inside this tiny cement building. I am greeted by a very nice local woman. I ask her for 6 doughnuts. As shes getting them I admire a religious shrine thats up on the wall. I am being looked at by the glass window that separates the two rooms by a younger girl. She was sitting with two older women whom Im guessing were her mother and grandmother. All of which were locals, and had that beautiful long dark hair that I find myself admiring when I get to see. (also reminds me of my besties back in NC who are from the islands) :-)

So the lady comes back with this bag of plain looking doughnuts. I get two bottle of ice cold water, and head out to the car. I admit I was hungry. It was breakfast time. The doughnuts to my surprise were rather warm! Jan said they are called galaxy doughnuts. I took one bite and I had this earth shattering feeling go all over me. Oh My GOSH! I have never tasted anything so satisfyingly comforting. I felt like that one bite solved the worlds troubles. That one bits wiped away all the tears being shed around the world. Laugh at me, but I will say, coming from Krispy Kreme land, I know a good doughnut, and let me tell you. THIS ONE WINS!!! I decided to change the name to EARTH SHATTERING DOUGHNUTS.

Anyways, I have some bad news. The skinny doggie we were feeding "Princess" got hit by a car and died. This was very sad news to us, but I honestly was thankful that she didnt have to live in this cruel world anymore. I was thankful that she wouldnt live another day in the hot heat with barely any food and water. My heart was crushed and happy at the same time. Sometimes I wish all the stray dogs could go, just so they wouldnt have to live the way they do.

Jan bought me some awesome makeup kind of as a thank you for helping her. I must say, the response I have been getting from the asian population while wearing the makeup is a LOT nicer than when i dont.... why is this? I want to point out right now that I am not racist, but honest. And sometimes honesty is taken alllll wrong. But I dont understand why so many of the non locals here see so angry all the time. Here I am , walking up into the post office, big ol smile, ready to exchange hellos and have a good days... and when I walk in, im lucky to get a look up and if I do, i get this look like "stop bothering me" And I know, who knows... maybe they are just having a bad day... but damn... every day?! haha

Jan and I went to the Duty Free Galleria and I loved it. There are all the crazy expensive shops. Tiffany & co. Cartier. Chanel. LV. and the list goes on. Im going to put some pics up from there. I was surprised we had shops like that here hahaha

well Im signing out. I think im going to join jan and our boy in the air conditioned bedroom and try to get some shut eye.