Thursday, April 27, 2006
Congratulations Teresa and Mike!
Teresa and Mike are the proud mama and papa of a bouncing new beautiful baby girl. Her name is Anya Stasia McCourt. She weighed in at 7 lbs and 10oz and was 19.5 inches long. Congratulations Mike and Teresa!!!
Sunday, April 23, 2006
Boxing match
Today Joe and I went to a boxing match. It's the first boxing match I've ever been to, and I have to say, it was pretty fun. At first I was a little worried that I'd be the only female there except for the ring girls. But I wasn't -- there were quite a few ladies there and the "ring girls" were two little boys of maybe 7 or 8 years old. They were so thrilled to be out in the ring in front of everyone, strutting back and forth with the round cards raised high above their heads and big 'ole grins on their faces.
Watching a fight live is much better than watching one on TV (as Joe is doing at this very moment). My favorite part was the intro for each of the the fighters. The music would come up, the lights start flashing (and this was at 11am!)and just at the crescendo the boxer would come out and jump around to the cheers of the crowd. Joe would size up the chances of the fighters -- "See that guy. He's gonna get it...look how scared he is." And then, after they touched gloves and began the fight, a hush would fall over the entire crowd as we concentrated on the action before us.
I had thought that I might be disturbed at the sight of two men beating on each other, but truth be told, I wasn't. It reminded me a lot of fencing -- keeping your distance, looking for openings, taunting your opponent. I was a bit concerned about flying sweat; we were sitting about four rows back and the sweat was spraying out into the air. But it turned out that we were at a safe enough distance and we just enjoyed the fights -- three knockouts!
Everything else has been going pretty well here. Joe and I started scuba diving classes this week. Sheer hell. The classroom part of the instruction was fine, but it all went downhill once we got into the pool. First of all, it took seriously about 15 minutes for me to get my butt into the damn wetsuit. And then, it didn't even work. The water was freakin' freezing. We were in the shallow end of the pool practicing what to do in case we ran out of air or our little life vest deal failed to open or if we became too tired to swim anymore and other cheery tasks. The night air combined with the frigid pool temperature had my teeth chattering within about 10 minutes of entering. And we stayed in for about four more hours!!!
BREAKING NEWS!!!! REBECCA (SHLAGHECK) SANTELIA IS PREGNANT!!! DUE IN DECEMBER. CONGRATULATIONS REBECCA AND MICHAEL!!!
Well, this news has me wanting to take a little writing break. Plus it's almost midnight. So...more later!
-kelly
Watching a fight live is much better than watching one on TV (as Joe is doing at this very moment). My favorite part was the intro for each of the the fighters. The music would come up, the lights start flashing (and this was at 11am!)and just at the crescendo the boxer would come out and jump around to the cheers of the crowd. Joe would size up the chances of the fighters -- "See that guy. He's gonna get it...look how scared he is." And then, after they touched gloves and began the fight, a hush would fall over the entire crowd as we concentrated on the action before us.
I had thought that I might be disturbed at the sight of two men beating on each other, but truth be told, I wasn't. It reminded me a lot of fencing -- keeping your distance, looking for openings, taunting your opponent. I was a bit concerned about flying sweat; we were sitting about four rows back and the sweat was spraying out into the air. But it turned out that we were at a safe enough distance and we just enjoyed the fights -- three knockouts!
Everything else has been going pretty well here. Joe and I started scuba diving classes this week. Sheer hell. The classroom part of the instruction was fine, but it all went downhill once we got into the pool. First of all, it took seriously about 15 minutes for me to get my butt into the damn wetsuit. And then, it didn't even work. The water was freakin' freezing. We were in the shallow end of the pool practicing what to do in case we ran out of air or our little life vest deal failed to open or if we became too tired to swim anymore and other cheery tasks. The night air combined with the frigid pool temperature had my teeth chattering within about 10 minutes of entering. And we stayed in for about four more hours!!!
BREAKING NEWS!!!! REBECCA (SHLAGHECK) SANTELIA IS PREGNANT!!! DUE IN DECEMBER. CONGRATULATIONS REBECCA AND MICHAEL!!!
Well, this news has me wanting to take a little writing break. Plus it's almost midnight. So...more later!
-kelly
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Spring Japan getaway anyone?
Just saw this link on travel zoo. Hmmm...any takers?
$481 -- Japan from New York (R/T), Last-Minute
http://www.travelzoo.com/Top20.asp?id=101235286
Source: American Airlines
$481 -- Japan from New York (R/T), Last-Minute
http://www.travelzoo.com/Top20.asp?id=101235286
Source: American Airlines
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
Rain
Rain, rain, rain. Today was a downpour of rain. An all day downpour that didn't end until right until I got off work. So that when I got into my car, the moon was out in all its glory and everything smelled and felt clear and clean. A bat swooped by...Okinawan bats are as big as eagles.
There is nothing like Okinawan weather. It changes not just daily, but hourly. When you see the sun, you've got to go out and grab it quick! 'Cause the wind will blow those clouds on by before you know it!
Hope all is well,
Kelly
Kelly's post and yesterday's rain reminded me of a movie. See if you can remember who made the quote and from what movie;
“One day it started raining…Little bitty stinging rain and big old fat rain, rain that flew in sideways, and sometimes rain even seemed to come straight up from underneath. Shoot, it even rained at night…and then, just like that, somebody turned off the rain, and the sun come out.”
Joe
There is nothing like Okinawan weather. It changes not just daily, but hourly. When you see the sun, you've got to go out and grab it quick! 'Cause the wind will blow those clouds on by before you know it!
Hope all is well,
Kelly
Kelly's post and yesterday's rain reminded me of a movie. See if you can remember who made the quote and from what movie;
“One day it started raining…Little bitty stinging rain and big old fat rain, rain that flew in sideways, and sometimes rain even seemed to come straight up from underneath. Shoot, it even rained at night…and then, just like that, somebody turned off the rain, and the sun come out.”
Joe
Friday, April 07, 2006
Cool Okinawan Animal Signs
Funny Signs you see driving around Okinawa.
Scuttling Happy Crab
Shocked Turtle
Scared Lizard
Struttin' Bird 
Happy Turtle-Joe
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Join NCIS
NCIS in ‘Massive’ Recruiting Effort as Caseload Increases
Service needs more special agents to help with global security
By David Allen, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Monday, April 3, 2006
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Here’s a way to quench your thirst for travel and adventure.
As U.S. troops remain engaged throughout the world in the fight against terrorism, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service is in need of more special agents to handle its increasing caseload.
“We’re in the middle of a massive hiring effort,” said Kevin J. Naylon, the Okinawa resident agent in charge. The agency has created more jobs to help with global security.
“We’re in direct competition with the FBI and other similar agencies — like the ATF, DEA,” said Naylon, a former officer for the Durham, N.C., police department and a 17-year NCIS veteran. “But the advantage of [working for] NCIS is we’re everywhere.”
NCIS agents can find themselves involved with a wide range of investigations, he added — from drug undercover work and homicides to counterintelligence, counterterrorism and force protection.
“The biggest attraction for me is the thrill of figuring it all out,” said Supervisory Special Agent Mary A. Jones, using as an example the murder of Seaman Adam Palecco on Camp Hansen last year.
“You get a case like the Palecco murder that’s a pure whodunit and you take it and it’s like solving a crossword puzzle, putting the pieces together,” she said. “There was a dead body left in a drainage tunnel and no leads.”
The case was solved in a matter of days, and by year’s end three sailors were sentenced to life in prison.
“Solving this case was incredibly satisfying for this office,” Jones said. The case also won the Okinawa resident agency the first NCIS Meritorious Unit Citation.
“The type of investigations we’re getting more involved with require things like advanced computer skills — since everything’s getting cyber these days,” she said. “And, since we’re operating worldwide, language skills would be a plus — especially Middle Eastern, Japanese, Chinese and Korean.
“Also, a military background is always a plus,” said Jones, a former Army military policewoman. “We always need people with an intel background — and just real good cop experience, too. Other pluses are advance educational degrees, especially in forensics.”
Besides serving in war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, NCIS special agents can be found aboard ships and at liberty ports and major Navy and Marine bases all over the world.
Jones said NCIS agents must be able to work well on their own. “In NCIS, our agents have a lot more autonomy a lot sooner than some of the other agencies.”
Applicants must be U.S. citizens and be between 21 and 37 years old. They also must have a bachelor’s degree, have top communication and analytical skills and pass an intensive background investigation.
And they need to be in good physical condition, Jones added. Nineteen weeks of initial training at the Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, Ga., “can be pretty grueling.”
Persons interested in the job opportunities with NCIS can visit its Web site at www.ncis.navy.mil.
Service needs more special agents to help with global security
By David Allen, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Monday, April 3, 2006
CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa — Here’s a way to quench your thirst for travel and adventure.
As U.S. troops remain engaged throughout the world in the fight against terrorism, the Naval Criminal Investigative Service is in need of more special agents to handle its increasing caseload.
“We’re in the middle of a massive hiring effort,” said Kevin J. Naylon, the Okinawa resident agent in charge. The agency has created more jobs to help with global security.
“We’re in direct competition with the FBI and other similar agencies — like the ATF, DEA,” said Naylon, a former officer for the Durham, N.C., police department and a 17-year NCIS veteran. “But the advantage of [working for] NCIS is we’re everywhere.”
NCIS agents can find themselves involved with a wide range of investigations, he added — from drug undercover work and homicides to counterintelligence, counterterrorism and force protection.
“The biggest attraction for me is the thrill of figuring it all out,” said Supervisory Special Agent Mary A. Jones, using as an example the murder of Seaman Adam Palecco on Camp Hansen last year.
“You get a case like the Palecco murder that’s a pure whodunit and you take it and it’s like solving a crossword puzzle, putting the pieces together,” she said. “There was a dead body left in a drainage tunnel and no leads.”
The case was solved in a matter of days, and by year’s end three sailors were sentenced to life in prison.
“Solving this case was incredibly satisfying for this office,” Jones said. The case also won the Okinawa resident agency the first NCIS Meritorious Unit Citation.
“The type of investigations we’re getting more involved with require things like advanced computer skills — since everything’s getting cyber these days,” she said. “And, since we’re operating worldwide, language skills would be a plus — especially Middle Eastern, Japanese, Chinese and Korean.
“Also, a military background is always a plus,” said Jones, a former Army military policewoman. “We always need people with an intel background — and just real good cop experience, too. Other pluses are advance educational degrees, especially in forensics.”
Besides serving in war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan, NCIS special agents can be found aboard ships and at liberty ports and major Navy and Marine bases all over the world.
Jones said NCIS agents must be able to work well on their own. “In NCIS, our agents have a lot more autonomy a lot sooner than some of the other agencies.”
Applicants must be U.S. citizens and be between 21 and 37 years old. They also must have a bachelor’s degree, have top communication and analytical skills and pass an intensive background investigation.
And they need to be in good physical condition, Jones added. Nineteen weeks of initial training at the Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, Ga., “can be pretty grueling.”
Persons interested in the job opportunities with NCIS can visit its Web site at www.ncis.navy.mil.
Monday, April 03, 2006
Antique Shop
Today was a Be-you-ti-ful day. It was the roll your windows down in your car and pump up the music kind of day. Joe's boss's wife, Gaye, (a very cool lady) and I went out for a day of exploration up north. Our goal - a Japanese antique shop nestled in the mountains. We took a windy country road there. Passed roadside stands with flowers and oranges. Ocean vistas. Gorgeous. The antique shop was on the side of a hill. It was enormous, walled and white -- it looked like a Tibetan monastary. Inside the walls, clay pots and statues littered the yard in a pleasing artsy-fartsy kind of way. There were three or four buildings to go into, all Tibetan monastary-esque. You had to take your shoes off before going in. The floors were filthy with dust anyway, so I didn't quite see the point, but anyway... They sold old kimonos and obis and pottery and cabinets and screens and tiles and all kinds of neat stuff. None of which I bought. (Everything was cool and affordable. It was too overwhelming.) I loved the outside, the layout. There were chairs and tables everywhere and fountains. I wish there were a cafe because the view--it was to die for. The whole complex overlooked forested hills that met far below in a small valley. In the valley sat a ribbon of houses and beyond the blue, blue ocean. Preciosa.
On the way back, the pressure of going all that way out and not bringing back anything overcame me, so I asked Gay to stop at one of the roadside stands. I bought two pretty potted plants. The lady who worked there gave me a juicy orange too. When I got home I told Joe to give a plant to one of our (American) neighbors, who got mad at us 'cause we parked our car in her driveway when guests came. And forgot it there...for two days. And so she left us nasty notes. Oops.
Bye!
-kelly
On the way back, the pressure of going all that way out and not bringing back anything overcame me, so I asked Gay to stop at one of the roadside stands. I bought two pretty potted plants. The lady who worked there gave me a juicy orange too. When I got home I told Joe to give a plant to one of our (American) neighbors, who got mad at us 'cause we parked our car in her driveway when guests came. And forgot it there...for two days. And so she left us nasty notes. Oops.
Bye!
-kelly
Sunday, April 02, 2006
Update
Hello. Been a while since writing. Our internet connection is constantly on the fritz. Plus I'm lazy.
Things are going pretty well here. It's beginning to seem a bit more like spring. The weather's not so chilly and I think the days are getting longer. My work schedule has changed for the better too. Su, my coworker, is going to be working nights and I'll be working days. So that means a normal 8-5 work day. Yeah! I'm so happy. Su is too, incidentally, she prefers sleeping in.
Mondays we're gonna start taking pottery lessons - me and Su, my boss Erika, and another co-worker, Courtney. This will replace my Japanese lessons. Yes, I've decided to take leave of my Japanese teacher. Things just weren't working out. We are, however, gonna meet for lunch together tomorrow. So, it was an amicable separation.
In other work related news, I've been making friends with Junko-san, one of the two cleaning ladies for our building. She's really nice, and a fantastic Japanese teacher. She teaches me a couple of new phrases each week. During one of our morning Japanese lessons it came out that she likes to dance: "shoko dance-o". I believe this is ballroom dancing. And soon I will find out, because she invited me and Joe to join her for a dance lesson after work. This man, her teacher, offers classes from his home. Apparently, students work towards a big dance party at the end of the year. Awesome!
(Joe just met Junko and the other cleaning lady, Eray, yesterday when he stopped by the shop. I asked him what they talked about. He started laughing and said they were trying to explain to him something about dancing. They couldn't find the words in English, looked at him, opened their arms and said, "Shall We Dance!" And they all started laughing.)
Oh, quickly, let me tell you one more reason Junko rocks. Each week, she places fresh arrangements of flowers throughout the building, picked from her garden. The flowers and greenery that she chooses are so simple, yet so creatively arranged. I wish I could show you some pictures. Hey...maybe I will!
Bye!
-Kelly
Things are going pretty well here. It's beginning to seem a bit more like spring. The weather's not so chilly and I think the days are getting longer. My work schedule has changed for the better too. Su, my coworker, is going to be working nights and I'll be working days. So that means a normal 8-5 work day. Yeah! I'm so happy. Su is too, incidentally, she prefers sleeping in.
Mondays we're gonna start taking pottery lessons - me and Su, my boss Erika, and another co-worker, Courtney. This will replace my Japanese lessons. Yes, I've decided to take leave of my Japanese teacher. Things just weren't working out. We are, however, gonna meet for lunch together tomorrow. So, it was an amicable separation.
In other work related news, I've been making friends with Junko-san, one of the two cleaning ladies for our building. She's really nice, and a fantastic Japanese teacher. She teaches me a couple of new phrases each week. During one of our morning Japanese lessons it came out that she likes to dance: "shoko dance-o". I believe this is ballroom dancing. And soon I will find out, because she invited me and Joe to join her for a dance lesson after work. This man, her teacher, offers classes from his home. Apparently, students work towards a big dance party at the end of the year. Awesome!
(Joe just met Junko and the other cleaning lady, Eray, yesterday when he stopped by the shop. I asked him what they talked about. He started laughing and said they were trying to explain to him something about dancing. They couldn't find the words in English, looked at him, opened their arms and said, "Shall We Dance!" And they all started laughing.)
Oh, quickly, let me tell you one more reason Junko rocks. Each week, she places fresh arrangements of flowers throughout the building, picked from her garden. The flowers and greenery that she chooses are so simple, yet so creatively arranged. I wish I could show you some pictures. Hey...maybe I will!
Bye!
-Kelly
