Day Thirty One (last day!)

Day 31- a picture of yourself.

I got my hairs did today. I love it.

Now that I am done with this challenge I have to find a new one! Ideas?

Day Thirty

Day 30 - A picture of someone you miss
Sorry, Today there will be no picture. I miss a lot of people, too many to name just one, I'll leave someone out and feel guilty. I miss all my friends from Tucson, I miss all my friends from the east coast, I miss all my friends from Japan, I miss all my family. As of late, I've been doing a lot of missing. It's hard to not miss things when you are so far away from everything, and everyone you know.

Day Twenty Nine

Day 29 - A picture that can always make you smile

{Sunabe Sea Wall, Okinawa, JP}

Every day I think about Okinawa and I smile. I will for all eternity look at the pictures from our time there and smile. It was the most amazing experience, and if I could do it all over again I would just so I could do it again. I wish we never had to leave. I wish we could go back. But alas we will likely never live there again, but hopefully we can find time some day in the future to visit. Okinawa, you will always be in my heart.

Day Twenty Eight

I know this has been on hold for a while but I have been trying to get my shiz in order, school has been very overwhelming as I have stated, but I am determined to manage my time better for the second half of the semester (which started yesterday) and I will find time to blog more than once a week, And I WILL finish this challenge!

Day 28 - A picture of something you're afraid of

Just the mere idea of these guys getting lost, running away or no longer being in my life makes me very sad, it hurts my heart. I love each one of these little turds, no matter how bad they may be sometimes, or how much they destroy, eat, or have to go to the vet. I love them with every bit of my soul. I love them too much and I know that, but that's what love is, never ending, unconditional, snuggles.

Day Twenty Seven

Day 27 - A picture of yourself and a family member

Just one! sorry I cannot pick just one family member.

we'll start with Paul pants, my loving husband of almost 5 years. This picture was taken 3 years ago at the Nago, Okinawa, JP cherry blossom festival. We went that year with Joselyn the first friend I made in Oki.

Next up is Sister Smelly Pants, Andrea, of Tales from a Hopeless Romantic. This pic is from the Hard Reef, in Okinawa, last winter. Andrea visited me there while Paul was deployed.

And last but not least, my favorite Dad & Mom. This was taken at Hedo point in Okinawa, JP last October when they visited me while Paul was training in San Diego.

gosh I change my hair a lot!

Day 26

Day 26 - A picture of something that means a lot to you

My little family means more to me than anything. I love them so much.

Day Twenty Five

Day 25 - A picture of your day

This is actually yesterday, I spent most of yesterday putting together my new treadmill. I managed to break part of a metal bar. But it was one of the three bars that holds on the display. and it's not totally broken. I was still pissed.

But today has been pretty boring, I dyed my hair, and I screwed it up, but tomorrow I'll fix it, It needs a day to rest. It has been through so much over the last 5 months, platinum blond to hot pink then three failed attempts of adding color and I finally had it right, for like a month. Then I went and effed it up again.

Day Twenty Four

Day 24 - A picture of something you wish you could change

Distance

• From here to Paul's mom- 2,170 miles
• From here to My parents- 1251 miles
• From here to Paul's dad- 363 miles
• From here to our friends back east- 2500 miles
• From here to our friends in Okinawa- 8639 miles

I really wish we didn't live so far from everyone we know. We havn't made any friends here yet. However I do have a blind friend date this weekend with a relative of a friend back home who just moved here.

I just wish we were only a few hours from everyone. Sometimes a little part of me wishes that we all lived in one place, and had our friends, and we were all stayed together. But I wouldn't trade the experiences we have had for anything.

Day Twenty Three

Day 23 - A picture of your favorite book

A long long time ago, in a far away land, before I started school, I used to read a lot. I read all of the Harry Potter books in less than a week, I loved fantasy, magic, dragons. I loved to read. Then we moved to Okinawa, and I started college full time. In the last 3 years I think I have finished 6-7 books, where I used to read at least 1-2 a month. I am much more selective on what I read now, because I don't have time to not like it. I don't want to waste my time reading something for pleasure that I am not going to enjoy. So I present you my favorite book:

Chelsea Handler gets an honorable mention for laugh out loud funny.

But Harry Potter will always be my favorite series.

Now Back to my regularly scheduled reading. At least this on isn't as monotonous and most of the other history text books I've had to read. I am just seriously lacking motivation this week.

Day Twenty Two

Day 22 - A picture of something you wish you were better at

Oh, I am a terrible housekeeper. My house is rarely clean. I will pick up in the morning and by the afternoon between the dogs emptying their toys everywhere and me being incapable of cleaning up after myself, the house gets wrecked. I had breakfast 2 hours ago and my bowl is still on the table in front of me. I had a cherry dr. pepper yesterday and the empty can is still on the table as well. The sweater I was wearing yesterday is still on the floor too. I have a big issue with putting (and leaving) things on the floor. My house isn't unsanitary, I do the dishes, my bathroom is fairly clean, except for laundry on the floor. My house is just messy. I have improved over the years, I used to be much worse, way way way worse. Growing up my bedroom looked like a war zone. I remember at one point I had so much stuff piled on my floor it was legitimately dangerous, several inches and in places up to a foot deep of just stuff. I have the hoarder gene and sometimes it really comes out. I have majillions of nicknacks. But like I said, I am getting better, since we arrived in MT I think I have single handedly kept the Goodwill donation center in business. At least once a week for about a month I have unloaded a trunk load of stuff there (mostly clothes).

Day Twenty One

Day 21 - A picture of something you wish you could forget

About 5 in the morning, I think it was October, nine or ten years ago, I was driving home from a party. Very near my apartment I stopped at the connivence store on the corner to get some breakfast. I had to do all the laundry I neglected the night before. An ambulance or fire-truck, something with sirens, zoomed by, the cashier said something like,"wow that's the 5th one."

Somehow I knew, my stomach sank, I left my items on the counter and raced to my car, I rounded the entrance to my apartment complex and was greeted by about a dozen cops, I was stopped. "You cannot go any further." I knew, I just knew. I raced past them on foot and told them I had to see if it was my apartment, one police man trying to stop me asked me my apartment number and when I told him he just stopped, he let me go. I rounded one more corner and was greeted my several fire-trucks and some of my neighbors. It was my apartment.

I'll never forget that feeling, the sinking feeling that I had just lost everything. And I had. Miraculously my cat had survived, he had climbed inside a upholstered chair they heard him crying and got him out, he was okay. everything else was a total loss. if it wasn't burned it was so smoke damaged that it was beyond repair. I called my mom, I remember I didn't cry, I was in shock. I stood in front of my apartment being comforted by neighbors and policemen.

The fire was electrical, it started in the bedroom, they said it burned so fast and so hot that had I been in there I may not have survived. The bedroom was empty, full of ashes. you couldn't tell where the bed, dresser, bookcases had been, everything was just ashes. All of my clothing and shoes were gone, All I had was what I was wearing.

This was one of the worst days of my life.

Day Twenty

Day 20 - A picture of somewhere you'd love to travel

I would love to go to Italy:

Vatican

Verona

Coliseum

Vittoriano

Trevi Fountain

Venice

amazing.

I actually have a friend living in Italy right now, I should just pack a bag and get on a plane, but I'm not that carefree to just pick up and go. I'd also like to go with Paul, or Sister. Someday though I will go, to all these places.

Day Nineteen

Day 19 - A picture and a letter

Dear Winter,

I know when Paul and I discussed where we wanted to go for Recruiting duty I said I wanted mountains and seasons, I sort of missed you winter. But this is bananas. Negative one? Way too cold for winter, unless you are spending winter in the arctic circle. (I should mention a few weeks ago when it was negative fifteen.. That was just stupid, and mean.) I like you winter, I really do, but I don't know how much more of this I can take before I start to hibernate. Your bitter cold takes all my energy, I don't want to go outside because it's so damn cold. I don't even want to look outside, because my beautiful mountain landscape just looks painfully cold. Winter I am over you, It's time you go away now.

It's not you, it's me.

No wait, it is you.

Always,

Alana

Day Eighteen

Day 18 - A picture of your biggest insecurity

I know I am not the only one who is very insecure about my whole self. But I am working on it.

Day Seventeen

Day 17 - A picture of something that has made a huge impact on your life recently

I saw something the other day that was amazingly breathtaking, I wanted to get a picture of it for todays post, but I havn't made it back to where I saw it. Maybe this weekend (cliffhanger!!!)

Moving to Montana from Japan in November has made a massive impact on my life. Talk about culture shock. Japan to Montana? crazy. Things are remarkably different here. I had gotten use to the simplicity of Japan. Living next to a best friend, Eating sushi several times a week, feeling safe. The biggest change has been the feeling of safety. Not that I think Montana is full of crazy thugs that want to rob me a steal my car, but my anxiety has gotten the best of me and I worry much more here than I did in Japan.

Culture shock is a good word for it. It's crazy to think that leaving from a country that I did not grow up in, and spent less than three years in and I came home to America and I had culture shock but I think I did. I really miss Japan, every day, but living in Montana has been an exciting adventure already, and I am sure it will continue to be until we leave.

Day Sixteen

Day 16 - A picture of someone who inspires you

Martha Stewart

Seriously, she can do anything, she cooks, cleans, entertains, she is superwoman!

I wish I could do half the things she can do. I'd like to have her cleaning and crafting abilities.

Day Fifteen

Day 15 - A picture of something you want to do before you die

I've done it before but I would LOVE to do it again.

Skydiving is an amazing experience.

Day Thirteen & Fourteen

I missed a day sorry:

Day 13 - A picture of your favorite band or artist

Currently I luv Ke$ha

Day 14 - A picture of someone you could never imagine your life without

Paul Pants (and my fur kids)

also my parents and sis.

Day Twelve

Day 12 - A picture of something you love
I love my fur babies:

Day Eleven

Day 11 - A picture of something you hate

Dishes, I loathe doing dishes.