"Breezing through the Windy City"

July came in a flurry 

and swept me away to Chicago,

that old city of wind and sun.

I stayed with my best friend from childhood,

Kairi Saotome Miss Erin Hunt.

I normally don't eat Chinese food,
but Chicago's Chinatown is too lovely to pass.

I've been to the Chicago zoo before, and loved it.
It's huge with tons and tons of animals.
Except this time, only 4 or 5 animals were out.
Huh? Hurray, camels...

And pretty zebras...

We saw Beauty and the Beast and fell in love:

My mother and Erin, with Lumiere.

Myself, with Gaston.

This trip ended too soon! Anyone up for a safari or somethin'?

{♪ "Get Outta My Way" via Kylie Minogue}

"It Is You (I Have Loved)"

Let's celebrate every day of the week.

Today is Tuesday. How did you make it special?

I made an ice cream sandwich, myself.

Dear Santa,
Wait, scratch that. Christmas is too far away.

What's the next holiday?
The 4th of July?

Dear Founding Fathers,
I would like a better camera

so my recordings can sound nice.

By the way, I love your guys' work. Revolutionary.

"Muddy Buddy Pizza Buddies"

"A man sees in the world what he carries in his heart." 
-Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

It started with a pizza-making party 
and rapidly escalated into a
Muddy Buddy party,
Girl Talk party,
Quelf party,
and even a Reader's Theater party.

The magical game of Quelf
where you win by being ridiculous.

Gals and guys alike
gathered to play in our humble little Stratford apartment.

Kevin and I as conjoined twins
{the game made us do it}.

...The game also made me stuff its box
up my shirt, calling me, "Square Blouse".
The game called me that, yes.

Reader's Theater:
Kate as a southern boy with a lisp,
me as her younger sister,
and Kami as the throaty voice from the closet.

Oh, friends,
what would the weekends be like without you?

{♪ "The Song That Never Was" © Imogen Heap, remixed by Michael Campion}

"Sugar Cookie Dates"

The boys in our ward stuffed their ties in a purse,

and asked the girls to choose one.

Whoever's tie you plucked out

was your date.

Clever, clever.

{We're doing the same thing with the girls' heels next time. Y'know, Cinderella.}

{Alex, Kevin, Doug, Ben, Paul <--my date}

So yesterday, it being Martin Luther King Day,

we had no school.

Perfect chance for a big ol' group date.

Kevin asked me to cut a Texas boot cookie for him,

which Doug kept trying to destroy.

But we managed to save it until the time of eating.

Walmart Smiley

Japanese Star

Sweet Kami

and her Pollock chocolate sugar cookie. 

Here's a little game:

10 Points of Awesome to whoever comes up with a good caption for this.

{♪ "Valentino" via Diane Birch}

"Time to Say Goodbye"

"Don't cry because it's over. Smile because it happened." -Dr. Seuss

This is a compilation of
my goodbyes.
{I said goodbye to my Chocolate apartment too, but there aren't any pictures of that.}

Goodbye to the Kawamoto family.

I'll always have a home in Japan
because of you, Akemi.

You feed me just as many goodies as my mama does.
...Boy, it sure seems like I'm always eating, here in Japan.

Oh, guess I am.

Goodbye, Kakogawa Ward.
You showed me the same Gospel I grew up with
from a refreshing perspective.

Goodbye, my Aussie gals.

You sent me messages
asking me how my classes went,
warning me about weather changes,
inviting me out to explore Japan with you.
Lauren, Kat, Vera,
I'm coming for Christmas one year.
Be ready.

The "Ghost Trees",
so rightfully named by Lauren.

The spirits of fallen samurai
wander amongst the shadows
of the illuminated Arashiyama bamboo forest...
Or maybe it's just the stray cats.

I'm going to step forward,
gathering all that I learned from
studying abroad,
and become the wonderful person
I dream to be.

My little life

will become a big one.

You're in my heart forever, 日本.

For now,

Sayonara, Japan. 

{♪ "Departure at Dawn" via Cecil Corbel}

"The Last Samurai Temple"

"There is life in every breath." -The Last Samurai

One of my Aussie gals took me to Mt. Shosha

where scenes from The Last Samurai were filmed.

Can you see why?
It's so beautiful.

The air was rich

with crackling incense.

The moss carpeted the tree barks

and stone lanterns.

The pathways beckoned us to ascend.

Rocks are frequently added to the tops
of statues and shrines,
each one representing
someone's prayer.

This mountain was filled with
stone guardians.

[hai, chiizu!]

We found a pilgrim path
to a fox shrine.

Many generations
of fox spirits.
The kitsune.

This is a dormitory
for priests-in-training.

The famous hall and temple
where the movie was filmed.

Looking out from the carved balcony.
So tranquil, I could've knelt there forever.

The Mirror Well
where the warrior-monk, Benkei
saw his graffitied reflection
and burned down the temple in retribution
towards the priest
who scribbled on his face.

Hmmm...
If geisha training doesn't suit my fancy,
I think I'll join a ninja clan.

Breathtaking.

A silent tomb garden.

Carpet of leaves.

Army of guardians.

I'd feel pretty safe, living up there.

Descending the mountain,
we entered Koko-en
the gardens of Himeji Castle.

The Japanese worship nature

and all its wondrous beauty.

Kat and I have decided to take that

nature-admiring mindset

home with us.

I'll definitely style my garden like the Japanese do.

Japan breeds enormous carp.

Though the frost will bite soon,

blossoms are just opening up

in the mountains and gardens of Japan.

There is life

in every season.

{Music © Brand X Music}