My Last Day at Home

I've spent the past week saying goodbye to friends and family as I prepare for my move to Japan. I've gone to my favorite restaurants to eat the food I will miss. I've gone to the theaters and rented the movies that I have been wanting to see. My mother and grandfather have been a huge help, each time saying how they will miss me and that they don't want me to go. My friends are happy for me, most of them excited but a few mad that I am leaving. Oddly enough I think I will miss my cats Monkey and Cerulean the most since its hard to tell them that I will be going or to even know that they will miss me. Theres also no good way to interact with them from afar, cats don't seem to hold much interest in phone calls or web cams.

So many things are still left undone yet everything I truly have needed to do I have somehow managed. My bags are packed, my clothes for tomorrow are set aside, my bike is boxed up and ready for transit. I have tried weighing my bags and they seem to be within acceptable limits. I am amazed how much stuff I am able to fit into the bags and yet also amazed how little room it all takes. I am really moving away, very far away from all that I know and that knows me.

Yet I could not be happier. I need a major change in my life so I can work on changing myself for the better. I have been so worried that I will stagnate here or end up living with my mother or grandfather till I am 30, 40, or worse. I am hoping that going to Japan will be a catalyst for a lot of positive changes in my life. Even if I end up dieing due to my choice, even on the trip over, it is worth it.

Japan, living on my own, and being away from any of my safety nets will force me to change whether I want to or not. That I want to change should make it all the better. One of the best ways to change habits or ingrained patterns is to change your environment. And I can think of few changes more drastic than moving from Michigan in the United States to Japan.

This is my last day at home.

This is the last night in my bed here.

Tomorrow I will not be living with my mother, or grandfather.

Tomorrow I will be on my journey to Japan.

In less than a week I will be at my new apartment in Japan with a new job.

In less than a week I will have spent my first day at home.

The Cake is NOT a lie!

Went out with my grandfather today for lunch and went to a Memphis Style BBQ place that I've been to a few times. Its a tiny lil restaurant thats hidden behind a gas station in a not-oft traveled place in town... but it by itself convinced me that ribs and pulled pork can be pretty tasty. Before I tried them there I was not a fan of either but now... its one of my favorite places to eat out for lunch.

Ordered a lunch special; a pulled pork plater that came with cornbread with almond butter and two sides. I went with my favorite side of maple sugar dusted sweet potato fries and asked the waitress what side she recommended. So I went with their fiji spiced apples. Just opted for water as a drink and asked if they had any bourbon pecan pie (my last visit I had just discovered they had deserts there and I was curious how they tasted). The waitress said she would check and since I was in no hurry (still had to wait for the food) that was fine.

Food came, waitress still didn't know though they were checking in back. Eventually the check came and by then she discovered they were all out. But since she couldn't find out she offered another desert for free... so I chose the carrot cake. Mind you I think carrot cake is alright but I have never had a satisfactory piece of carrot cake at a restaurant. Its always a tiny lil square with a dollop of cream cheese frosting.

What was brought out was a huge slice of triple layar carrot cake with tons of cream frosting and even a huge rosette of the frosting on top. Shaved carrot over the top and shaved white chocolate on the back of the cake! It was moist, it was delicious... bugs bunny would pimp himself out to have a slice of it. So... while the pie may be a lie rest assured that the Cake is NOT a lie! It was free, and it was good!