Mt. Fugi and the incredible roads that lead to it...

Mt. Fugi is a place I have always wanted to see. It stands over 12,000 feet and has a beautiful snow pack at the top...woke up super excited to see it. We took the country roads there, much more to see along the way then the highway. The roads were mixed with small towns with lots of character and picturesque countryside. First stop 7/11. In Japan, 7/11 is more than just a quikie mart....they have great meals. Loaded up on everything from chips to "American dogs" also known as corn dogs in the states. Everything just tastes better here. It's hard to explain unless you try it but the food has so much more flavor...even a corn dog. I just can't get over how great the food is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped several places along the way to take pictures and all of the cherry trees were blooming. The countryside is a good mix of open fields with farmland and huge mountains with so many different breeds of trees all super close together, making it hard to know where one tree ends and another begins. The mountains are steep and the trees even grow on the rim of the mountain.

Fugi was playing hide and seek with us...you would turn a corner and could not see and then bam...there it is again. We got out at a lake...the views were incredible. There was a visitor center and ice cream. The specialty was blueberry ice cream...so stinking gooooooood! Walked along the paths, eating our ice cream and enjoyed the views. The trees lining the lake were cherry blossoms but had not received their blooms yet. I could imagine how georgous it is when the blooms are the foreground to Mt Fugi. ;)

 

 

 
 

 

 

 

We took the drive up Mt Fugi...it was only open to station one. It was so worth it though, you seemed so close that you could reach out your window and touch it. As we were driving, all the sudden we heard music. We realized it was coming from outside and the car was creating the sound. They had carved grooves in the asphlat in a way that when your car drove over it, a song was played. It was awesome. 

We started driving the countryside again and arrived at the spot that turned out to be my favorite. It was a small lake, Lake Saiko pronounced psycho, so you know we were having fun with that name:). It was a small lake with a few people fishing but other than that, we were the only people there. We walked a little further up the hill because Christie has turbo vision and she saw thatched roofs and thought something interesting might be up there. She was right. It was an old village that was on the hillside over looking Fugi. Each house had a roof made out of a straw material and the doors were traditional slider doors. Each hut has turned into a souvioner shop, each having a different theme...pottery, food, silks. The rows of huts are separated by a stream with small waterfalls and a watermill. When we reached the top of the village, there was a perfect view of Fugi framed with the huts surrounding it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 

 

Time to start heading home, this time taking a mountain road home. It reminded me of Tahoe. A rocky stream and tons of pine trees. We have Japanese Curry for dinner, which is delicious, and head back to the house for the night. Japan has stolen my heart...love the environment and people...and so glad I am sharing all this with incredible people.

 

 

Flying without hassle

As I was walking through airport security today...I started thinking about how unprepared people are when they fly. I am sure a lot of its lack of knowledge. If you don't fly often, it's hard to keep track of the rules. Can I bring liquids, do I take my shoes off, what should I pack in a carry on?

I fly enough that I now have a routine. I wear the same outfit, pack the same bags and put the same things in them. So....here is how I make it through the travel process with ease. 

1st....I pack a suitcase, small carry on backpack with lots of pouches and my purse. 

In the carry on, I bring a travel toothbrush and paste, my iPod and iPad, earbuds, gum, either pretzels or crackers, a book, all medications, face wash, fuzzy socks and a pair of panties. Let me explain why....there was a time that I did not bring these extras and I paid the price. Did you know that if you are stuck in an airport or even transferred to a hotel overnight because of delays....They do NOT give you your bag. I have been stuck overnight more than once and wearing day or two old undies, have not brushed your teeth or washed your wash and are in desperate need of a snack when all the airport restaurants have closed for the night.....it's not pretty people....NOT pretty at all. 

Ok...next. Always always always wear flip flops. Nothing drives me crazier than the woman in front of me trying to take her knee high boots off to go through security. It's not a fashion show people....it's the airport. You are about to be crammed on a tiny plane with 200 other people for hours. They don't care what you are wearing. 

Also, don't wear jewelry....not even your watch. If I bring a watch...I pack it in the carry on and put it on once I get to the gate. My "airplane outfit" is flip flops, a pair of yoga pants, a t shirt and a zip up hoodie. Not only does this help you get through security faster....but if you get stuck overnight in an airport, would you rather sleep on the floor in yoga pants or a skirt and boots?

 Let me tell you a story about a woman at the San Jose airport a few trips ago. She was ahead of me...she had a short skirt, nylons, high boots, a belt, a jacket and a ton of jewelry on. So, I patiently waited as she undressed to get through security. Thought we were good to go....beep beep. She has to go back. She forgot her dress had pockets and there was something in there. Back she went. Beep beep again....this time, they took her aside and patted her down. Her bag was also pulled to the side. I watched as they pulled out liquid body spray, lotion and two bottles of water. Holy canoles lady, can't you read the signs? I walked through...no beeps...grabbed my bag and flip flops and I was off to Starbucks. The Starbucks was all the way at the opposite side of the terminal that I needed but I had time....so off I went. Got my coffee...sat and ate a pastry and walked what seemed like miles back across the terminal. As I walked past security again....that lady was still putting all her jewelry, shoes and accessories back on. I giggled and went about my business. She created 30 minutes of unnecessary stress for herself. 

Next....when you get to security, empty ALL items from your pockets....this includes paper...your ID and boarding pass. Once you have passed through the TSA officer checking your boarding pass and ID, you won't need your ID again for the trip....put it back in your wallet. You can bring baby formula and baby food on a plane....you can also pack liquid medications. You can still have 3, 3oz containers of liquid that have to fit in a quart size bag. You must remove your shoes and place them in a bin....again..flip flops make this easy as pie! You also have to remove your laptop and put it in a separate bin but this does not apply to iPads. 

Depending on the airline you are flying, you may or may not get to pick your seat ahead of time. I fly southwest most of the time....and if you check in exactly 24hours....to the second....ahead of time....you get priority to get on the plane first and grab the exit row. Sooooooo needed for amazon tall people like myself. Even if the exit row is taken, sit as close to that row as possible. The center of the plane is the widest. The seats in the center are bigger and wider. The further to the front or back you go...the less elbow room you have. Also, I sit down and put my stuff on the seat next to me....if it's not a full flight it will detour anyone from sitting next to you....it works...trust me!

Well, my flight is about to land...soooooooo I hope some of these tips helped you out and can learn from my years of mistakes and hot messes! Happy flying!

Guns...or the people that shoot them.

Leaving me on a half empty plane with two and a half hours to kill always makes my mind spin and want to blog my thoughts....so here I go.

Does a gun fire all by itself or does someone have to hold it and pull the trigger? Do you think more people are killed with rifles or hand guns? Does the media have any responsibility in scaring Americans and giving a skewed view on events? Shouldn't they just simply providing the facts? Do we also have the responsibility of fully informing ourselves of the facts in cases before opening our mouths and continuing to spread fear? These are all things I think of when it comes to the gun control talks and mass murders being committed. 

The mass shootings seem to be what people fear the most recently. It's created a lot of fear which is manipulated by the government to create new "safe gun laws." Illegal gun ownership is not the problem. From the time span between 1982-2012 there were 61 mass shooting...49 of those were committed with guns that were legally owned. Whereas, only 12 were illegal guns. There is also a fear that rifles are the problem. In 2011, 323 murders were committed with rifles and 6220 with handguns. So if guns don't fire all by themselves, people owning illegal guns and rifles are not the problem...what is? The person shooting the gun!

What do these people all have in common? How can we see the signs ahead of time and implement laws that help reduce the problem instead of contributing to it? In the case of the Santa Barbara shooting, the parents saw the writing on the wall. They were not in denial. One month before the shooting they called the police to check on their son. They did not feel he was safe and wanted him committed. Unfortunately, he told the police that he did not want to hurt himself or others so the police had no choice but to leave. You don't think that the shooter knew exactly what to say to make the police go away?  He owned the guns he used legally....did not have a criminal record and if you googled him before the shooting...nothing would have come up. But, there were signs. He was a loner, angry and narsacistic. If the world did not revolve around him, he was upset. Was he born a narsacist or was it a learned behavior from being spoiled and never told no. Nature vs nurture....the question that may never be fully answered. 

The shooter of all the school kids in Connecticut locked himself in his room for the months before the shooting and spent hours playing video games and living nothing but a fantasy world. No reality. Would he have been committed if his mom called the police. Probably not, the cops would have come...saw that he was odd and a loner but not harming anyone and would not be able to do a thing. He took the life of his mother, teachers and innocent children. He had serious social and anger issues, yet his mother took him to the shooting range and left the guns easily accessible to him. I am in no way saying it's his mothers fault....but stating the facts. 

 In the case of the columbine shooting, the two suspects were also known as loners and had social issues. They had a minimal criminal history, breaking into a van and stealing a computer. They were punished and released from probation shortly before they killed 13 people and injured many more. There were signs that these kids should have been watched closely but for some reason were ignored. In the letter, Harris expressed regret about his actions; however, in one of his journal entries dated April 12, he wrote: "Isnt america supposed to be the land of the free? how come, If im free, I cant deprive a stupid fu?&ing dumbsh@$ from his possessions If he leaves them sitting in the front seat of his fu?&ing van out in plain sight." Again, what I see is narsacist behavior and entitlement issues. They made many videos in their parents basement and had numerous journals and evidence that there was a serious problem brewing. 

The shooting at the theatre in Colorado seemed like such a shock at the time. Again, innocent victims out to watch a movie were ambushed. Again, the shooter was a loner with mental health issues...currently being treated by 3 clinicians. One of Holmes' psychiatrists suspected, prior to the shooting that Holmes suffered from mental illness and could be dangerous. A month before the shooting, Dr. Lynne Fenton reported to the campus police that he had made homicidal statements which indicated he was a threat to the public. Despite the fact that she was seeing him as a patient, she decided not to hospitalize him for saying he wanted to kill people. Her reasoning is unknown. I can only imagine the pain she feels with that decision. Other acquaintances also feared Holmes was violent. Two weeks prior to the shooting, he sent a text message asking a graduate student if they had heard of the disorder dysphoric mania, and warning the student to stay away from him "because I am bad news". 

So many warnings and no action taken...in some cases because the law prohibits us from taking action that may actually help and in other cases, clear warning signs and cries for help go ignored, most likely because they did not think the person would actually do it. Maybe we need to believe people when they make statements about killing others. We should watch the signs from the kids that spend the majority of their days alone...playing video games and living in a fantasy world. Eventually, that fantasy lonely world can become a reality and that's when people see the patterns of behaviors and wished they would have paid closer attention or taken action at the time. 

If we look back at the recent years of mass shootings and evaluate who these people are and why they do what they do...we can reduce the amount of incidents. First of all the media makes the shooter a type of celebrity, plastering his picture on every network, every hour of every day. It's rare to turn on the news and hear the life stories of the people that died....give tribute to who they were and honor them. Nope, we sensationalize the killer by telling his entire life story, interview his neighbors, elementary teachers, friends and family. Can you name one person that was killed or injured from the recent shooting in Santa Barbara? Or how about the columbine shooting? We all remember Dylan klebold and Eric Harris, the killers name, but what were the victims names? What did they look like? I can still picture in my head the mugshot shown over and over of the mass killing at the theatre in Colorado. His bright orange hair and bug eyes....but now thinking back...I don't remember seeing a single picture of a victim. 

The media decides what photos to post...only concerned with what will get the best ratings. Even though this was not a mass shooting...this case gives a great example of media manipulation. After the Travon Martin shooting, they posted pictures of Travon at 12 years old...very small and innocent looking. Then they posted photos of the shooter...an old picture of him when he was MUCH larger than the day of the shooting. Travon was 17 years old and 5'11" and Zimmerman 28 years old and 5'7". They talked about a kid walking home from buying skittles....forgetting to mention that he was buying products that, when combined, make you high. Also, did they emphasize that he was walking along people's flower beds, feet away from the house windows, at night, with his hood up? Did they play the 911 tape where you can clearly hear the shooter screaming for help? Show the photos of his bloody head, broken bloody nose because his head was being bashed against the sidewalk and was punched in the face? Nope, they talked about race and how this kid was walking home and was shot for no reason. Travon was speaking to his girlfriend on the phone when the shooting happened and she admitted that travon was being aggressive towards the shooter. None of this was emphasized....only flashes of 5 year old photos of an innocent looking kid. The media skewed it to their liking. Why did they not report the elderly man that was tied to a back of a truck and drug until he died only weeks after the Martin case? That was true evil...

I wonder if these kids that have entitlement issues and are narcissistic know that they will get the national attention that they believe they deserve by committing the crimes and that is one of the reasons they do it. 

Either way, mass killings seem to all have a few common threads. They were committed by narsacistic loners and there were many warning signs in each case that were ignored. I don't have a clear cut answer on how to stop these killings but know that laws need to be changed to give more options for people that pose a threat to the public and we need to stop wasting time on gun control laws.