From Planet Japan

The pace of life here is very slow and relaxed compared to San Francisco and I am enjoying it.
The main activity is our house planning- meeting with several companies, looking at their design plans (conceptualized from our ideas and theirs).
Finally as of last week, a company named DAIWA presented a plan that we really like and now we are waiting to hear the estimate next week.
We've been meeting with architects and interior designers from various companies, all very interesting.
At first when we started the planning, we were thinking with our "San Francisco" minds: "Oh it's so inexpensive to build a house here let's do anything we want!" Since anything you buy in SF is easily 800K.
Now we've had to take a step back and think about what we really want to spend. We decided we want a low monthly payment so we can use our money for family activities, traveling and of course saving for retirement. If we have any additional income in the future, we might buy property on the ocean or in the mountains.
We decided to keep our house cost below $260K, so our mortgage will only be $900 a month and the interest rate for 35 years will be 3 percent.

To us the price seems so inexpensive, compared to CA. From my experience, in San Francisco, the most expensive and "chic" designed homes all replicate some aspect of Japanese design and here it's just the way it is, so we are going to have a home that would cost easily a million dollars in SF, but here, we can have it for $260K.

The design we have worked on with Daiwa is 3 bdr, plus office and a large room for my classroom, where I plan to teach, if I can find any students!
I can't tell you offhand the measurements, because Japanese have a different way of measuring Area and I'd have to convert it all.

And more and more about the house.....next step with DAIWA, if we like the price is getting approved for the loan.
We were already approved with another company, Misawa (they sold us the land) but I'm not sure we will go with them.
I'm not 100% keen on their style, plus their homes can't be reformed, so when Noi inherit this house, she won't be able to change it.
We want to have that option, because 25 years from now, the house will need a little reforming and the technology will change and if she wants to live in Akita, she will want to remodel it.

Work wise we are just doing KC Communications and I'm thinking about lesson planning for my school.
It just so happens that the largest English school in the area where we will live just closed down, so that's a bonus for me!
But at the risk of sounding lazy, I want to teach, but I don't want to teach too much.
Teaching has a high burn-out level and I want to enjoy it AND at the same time be Noi's mama.

Well, coming to Japan has been tiring.
I have so much energy all the time, but the last 3.5 months in San Francisco were too CHAOTIC.
I'm surprised I managed to make it to Akita without having a nervous breakdown.
That was one of the most stressful situations of my life.
We were working on projects until the last 24 hours before leaving and a few of them continued over after arriving in Akita.
Up until last week, I haven't had a chance to slow down, but now we've only received one project in a week, so it's been better.

Hideto and I bought bikes and we've been biking everywhere. We just use his parent's car when we need one, but it's so easy to bike to get everything we need. Japan is cool that way, everyone bikes and the sidewalks are wide for biking. Noi loves sitting on the back of my bike and whizzing around the city to all the parks. There are a lot of parks here. Every 3 blocks there is a little park, because the parks also serve as an evacuation "safe" spots for earthquakes. Noi is loving all the parks. Yesterday we went to the main city park where we were married and we played there and watched the GIANT black birds. Noi loves them and so do I. They are amazing and I'm sure the inspiration for Hitchcock's "The Birds".

Other than that, not much else going on, just eating a lot of chocolate.
Trying to adjust to Japanese diet again.
A lot of fried food here and I can't handle it.
It makes my stomach hurt, but on a positive note, the fruit and vegetables and meats and milk are 90% better than in the states.
Basically everything is produced locally and it's so good and seasonal of course. A more natural diet.
And trying to get used to be the only white person in site. Everyone stares at me. It's funny, but also sometimes annoying, but I don't care really.

The leaves are now changing and it's very beautiful. Next week will be the peak and also the peak of mushroom season, so we'll go to the countryside and pick up mushrooms from farmers and make delicious dishes.

All for now.......