Thursday, 12/19/97 the wee hours in the morning!
I woke up at four am this morning. no, not pre-wedding jitters! There's storming outside our windows! You can hear the waves crashing ashore half a block away.
Yeah, sometimes I think about tsunamis.
But anyway, there shouldn't be rain the morning we go to marry on Friday.
Mom and Frank flew in two nights ago. Naomi will fly in, as will her friend Kana tonight. Everything seems to be nearly perfect. But it might be muddy at the site, which are cliffs, high, high up overlooking a beach called New Brighton. Gorgeous view- though I must admit, I feel VERY nervous actually- to be so close to that edge. It's amazing there isn't any warning or anything otherwise to try to prevent anyone from getting too close to the edge!
So, after we're married, we'll go for lunch with everyone~ then BALL GAMES!!! Time will fly, having fun... Mom and Frank have to leave the following day- boo-hoo- it's just so fun hanging out with Mom. With age, and perhaps not so much time together, makes catching up so fun. Oh, and good food?!! xoxoxo
Gosh, it will be even MORE fun with Naomi here- goodness, then come next week~ birthday, Christmas, and our wedding party! "Ride 'em Cowboy" - sorry- "YAHOO" came to mind first- the "ride 'em..." followed- but our DJ is lining up gorgeous tunes to dance to... I never want those kind of times to end- dancing till you drop, positive, tripping FUN!!!
I'm not thinknig too well this dark, cloudy morning.
There is actually another storm brewing- to oust Zen's basketball coach, and Taka and I will go to meet with other parents and the Santa Cruz High School athletic dierector from 11am.
So- this pre-ceremony fun... it's all pretty much "hunky dory" for us anyway!!
I just downloaded the Dixie Chicks- "Going to the Chapel" and had fun listneing to that! Taka doesn't know that. ANd we'll have to practice his saying "Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife" funny, cutie-- for a Japanese to pronouce that "lawfully..." and then he goes and keeps throwing in "rawfurry- rovery wife"- lovely, lovely!!!
ok, gotsta get a bit more beauty sleep!! xoxoxo
12/11 Hey you guys- I'm just not sure how this works and the time I should take to "surf" around here to see what it's about-just takes time I haven't had yet. But I want to just WRITE!!!
Where we're living, Santa Cruz, south of San Francisco 2 hours, is COLD! Those northerly winds and seas are even cold in summer. I did not step one toe into the sea even in the summer. But those surfers IMPRESS! I always drive that road- pull out from our drive way, turn left, go half a block and I'm at West Cliff Drive. It's THE road running a mile and a half to the Santa Cruz boardwalkAnother block down and it's the Lighthouse Park on the left, where dogs galore are in heaven running around, the beaches to the right- dogs have been free to run into the ocean and play. It's been called dog beach.... maybe the laws have changed I heard though. Sad if so.
It has been a bit of a trip. California Christmas. All the fall colors, trees losing their leaves, and then the palm trees blowing in the wind next to them! Some mornings there is even a frost on windshield.
12/9/07
I've made it here to Xanga [another site I tried to work out] -- my old, dear, beer drinking buddy Thomas recommended this site, and I have just -oh so much to write!
Long story here- not a surprise considering the history! I'm just back in Santa Cruz California after 21 years of living in Japan.
Ah, yes, the history, in a sunflower shell; married a hippie Japanese dear man at 22, and the first of our four was born when I was 22. Half of our kids were homebirthed in California, half were homebirthed in a tipi in a bamboo filled hillside of Japan.
Back and forth now, with my English school still in Nishio, Aichi, Japan, but my fiance, man of eleven years, Taka and my "baby" Zen, live in Santa Cruz now. Zen brought us back. Taka's as happy as Zen is to be back. I'm working on it.
Zen is the family's pride, joy and hope. He's a basketball star. We must admit. As a freshman, on Varsity, he's making some waves.
Well, I only leave this for now. I don't know how it works here and hope I'm expecting correctly!!
Most very Truly, Thia
12/7/07
Last night we went to see the second night of a three day long famous event in town called the Dad’s Club where yearly about 5 teams from out of town come and compete at the downtown Civic Center. Santa Cruz High School (SCHS), The Cardinals, have been the champions for a number of years running until two years ago when their present Coach began coaching. Anyway, Zen’s on Varsity and one thing he said when they lost but had played amazingly against Gilroy, was that he was happy to show he deserved to be on the Varsity team. He had heard that some had critisized, wondering WHY a freshman deserved to be on Varsity.
Well, the team won the first game by a large margin, though Zen was very unhappy with his scoreless play, he’s enjoyed the newspapers and information reporting his 3 point average per game. But last night, even with only one basket, and a free throw, there were kids in the stands screaming for Zen. And Zen says three boys had Z and E and N written on their stomachs!! And then llike Zen makes a Z with his two hands forming the Z, some kids are doing that for him too!! What a fantastic reception/ reaction to his presence!
So they lost that game last night but Zen was in really good spirits. Today’s game is against perhaps their biggest rival, the neighboring Soquel team. Soquel coach, and some players, were with the first community team Zen joined after he arrived here last May. The Soquel H.S. coach kept talking with Zen about not coming to SCHS but that he should be at their Soquel H.S. because... of the many reason that coach had. Zen wasn’t perticularly happy with that coach, and now he liekly feels especially anxious to prove he made the right choice, to be on a better team! One main player for Soquel was just written up and photographed gorgeously on the front page of the Sports section in the main paper in town, The Sentinal.
Also one retired coach, Tom is still working with Sochel H.S. Tom is who originally “found” Zen and got him onto this other main team, West Valley, a team of higher level players.
So team will also wish to prove something to Tom, who we regard as a respectable coach and really a friend.
Okay, so aside from basketball finally, Taka and I went to the DMV yesterday morning, and Taka passed his driver's license test- on the first try! And he had had to study in english, but then the test was in Japanese- strange japanese he said! And JUST passed the test! Oh, my smart boy!!
Then we were driving to City Hall to buy the marriage license paper for our "marrier"?! to sign on our big day (12/21).
Then we got rear-ended! I feel sorry for the girl, her insurance is going to go so high- but our bumper has to be replaced. Thank goodness she called her insurance company soon after we parted ways (I started to feel scared, that I didn't have enough info about her, from her, and since she was from out of town…). Half a block from where the accident happened, was a Subaru shop (our car maker) and they told me it will likely be between $500 and $600 to repair- I called the girl, and since she won't be able to cover it, I had to asked for her insurance company number and that's the way we'll be figuring out how it'll be paid. Taka got a little whiplash- more shock perhaps- however after the nap he took helped We weren't deterred from getting that marriage license paper- we're all set in that area!
Oh, well, I suppose I can’t say “ALL” set, but getting close!
It’s Saturday morning, 10:15 am. And Zen still sleeps. I massaged his legs last night until we went to bed by 1 am. It feels leisurely enough this morning to also do some more massage for him as well. He wore stockings for leg support until two games ago, but has chosen. Out of self consiousness I believe to not wear them. That’s bothering me, his legs seem to be getting bad again. He doesn’t want to listne to us though!
Signing off!!
12/3/07
I finally wrote out what Lisa will help us print for our wedding party invitations:
Please join Taka and me, Thia, at our dance party to dance over the joy of our nuptials on Saturday December 29th.
For a bite to eat ahead of time, and to sing out some of our high spirits, at I LOVE SUSHI we will have karaoke and sushi from 4:30-7pm at 515 Front St. in downtown Santa Cruz.
From 7 pm we can move a block down to The 418 Project (at 418 Front St!) with a DJ ready to spin, so that we may then dance to our heart's content- is the plan!
From 7-9pm The Jumping Monkey- located inside The 418 Project will have some of their Indian food ready for our munching happiness. The only thing we ask of you, besides your presence, is that you pay for what you wish to munch on. And if you would, please RSVP by 12/16.
We are looking so forward to celebrating with you too!!
Love from Taka and Thia
Date: 12/1/07
We’re on our way to San Luis Obisbo, it’s Santa Cruz High’s 3rd and 4th games there, the last two of a three day tournament. The High School football team has their final game for the Championship today too. There are a few basketball players on the football team too, they’re missing these first games of the basketball season. And whereas the very first basketball game of the season was an amazingly exciting game- though they lost- the team was making fantastic shots and amazing plays. Zen too! They played against two players 6’11” (2m.10cm!) and when Zen standing blocked one of them, making him him miss the shot- the crowd went crazy! Taka was video taping and he says some of the football players watching screamed “AND HE”S OUR FRESHMAN!!” (Taka loves repeating that!!!). Zen also made a three pointer- well a total of 7 points, and in the next days newspaper his name also was written as one of the players scoring.
That was 11/27, a Tuesday night. It was hard to fall asleep after that. Usually Zen doesn’t talk much with me about games, but he talked a little about how he was happy with how he played and that people who had doubted, and questioned why a freshman should be on the team was, basically, being put to rest! Zen’s proving his worth!
So, two days ago I drove players down here to San luis Obisbo with some other parents, for this tournament. It was a 2 1/2 hour drive, and though the team had time to sit around their rooms (we actually had had burgers a half hour before reaching the hotel) they started playing and never got a lead. The two mothers and I were pretty shocked. 71-30 they lost.
That night I drove back by myself, in spite of getting a little lost, I got back just after midnight.
And yesterday, we called Zen around 7pm to hear they’d lost. Zen didn’t sound terribly bad actually. But he did say he hates his coach. Taka understands- and I believe Zen knows how coachs can and should be. So… I feel for him.
So, we’re driving now, and I found this journal place to start writing as I’ve thought I should do in a sort of blog. Because I want to share so much about what’s been happening. Writing here in this journal site, here I don’t have to be on-line, just I have to figure out how I can drag this into mails for you to read and enjoy!
This morning before we started this drive, Taka asked if we should take a short walk to the ocean. I knew, or thought I knew why. Last night I had actually thought, wished he would already do that engagement ring presentation thing!!
See, last Wednesday we picked up the wedding bands we’d ordered, along with my great grandmother’s engagement ring which new, great friends, Marianne and Peter Williams had fixed and enlarged at his well known store in Santa Cruz (their son, Keith, has been playing basketball with Zen and Joe since last summer’s Jones Hoops Camps- and now we get to play tennis with Marianne too!). Anyway, this morning we took a walk out to the ocean, it was a little cloudy, but we got to the place where Taka one night back in ,
June proposed to me. But we got there, and right away he asked “shall we go back?” and I thought “shoot” …
