My First Visit to Japan (Part 4)

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎14, ‎2009, ‏‎10:00:10 PM): Looking out of the window at the building my sister was teaching English in. I got to meet her students and we exchanged questions. 😀

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎14, ‎2009, ‏‎10:02:56 PM): Art inside the building. 😀

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎14, ‎2009, ‏‎10:20:34 PM): We ate at a tiny little place and I tried to capture how small it was. 

(Had to order Ramen. Hai!)

My sister and I went to Shibuya, Tokyo to hang out with Donovan Frankenreiter and his band. (His band members used to have their own band and play at her old workplace in Jacksonville, FL.! They’re some awesomely fun dudes!)

(Thursday, ‎January ‎15, ‎2009, ‏‎3:53:06 AM)

(Thursday, ‎January ‎15, ‎2009, ‏‎3:53:40 AM)

(Thursday, ‎January ‎15, ‎2009, ‏‎3:54:00 AM)

(Thursday, ‎January ‎15, ‎2009, ‏‎3:56:06 AM)

Cool! A Karaoke & Internet Cafe.

(Thursday, ‎January ‎15, ‎2009, ‏‎4:12:18 AM): We ate and grabbed some drinks at a nice place before the show.

Here’s a video I put together of moments captured on my old cellphone:

I drank a good bit of the various alcoholic beverages in their cooler backstage. It was so fun meeting my sister’s friends!

(Thursday, ‎January ‎15, ‎2009, ‏‎7:03:30 AM): Great light show, too!

(As soon as Donovan stepped offstage and opened the door to the backstage, his wife handed him his two sleepy children. I had to snap the behind the scenes photo to capture the moment. It was so sweet! 🙂 I think they went straight to the hotel after that while the rest of the band, Lisa, and I went out to a fancy restaurant nearby to eat, drink, and be merry!

(After tons of food and lots of drinks, Lisa and I realized that we had only five minutes to catch the last train back to her home. We ran through Tokyo drunk and somehow barely made it! I have no idea how we figured out the ticket computers so fast…)

(HI! From the Ramen museum.)

(Here I am, waiting for some delicious salted pork kebabs)

(That’s all for now…)

(I hope it made you smile!) 🙂

❤ Kimlee

My First Visit to Japan (Part 3)

 

 

So, we went Ice-Skating! I was 23, and it was the first time I’d ever ice skated and it was in Japan. It was amazing! Just like rollerblading for me, which I used to love and be great at. 

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎4:26:56 AM): 

 

(This picture glitched on my phone at the bottom, but it still tells the story. 😉

 

 

Wheeeee!

 

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎4:32:40 AM)

 

(Monday, ‎January ‎12, ‎2009, ‏‎9:30:20 AM): Chu-hi’s taste like Sprite, but will get you verrry drrrunk! Trust me.

 

(Monday, ‎January ‎12, ‎2009, ‏‎11:38:18 PM): The next day, we went to Kamakura to see the Daibutsu. ❤ We took the trains to get there. 🙂(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:04:28 AM): Drunk off of Chu-Hi’s the night before… I let Lisa dye my hair. 

 

(It was really crazy. lol)

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:34:52 AM): It’s a Sunny Day in Kamakura! 😀

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:35:22 AM)

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:36:26 AM)

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:36:50 AM): They know how to make you hungry!

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:40:30 AM): We stopped in at a tiny Ramen shop.

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:39:42 AM): Mmm!

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎12:47:06 AM): Mmm… it’s so much better than the menu picture!

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎1:17:52 AM)

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎1:20:20 AM): I’m so glad Lisa took me to see the Great Buddha!

 

 

(

 

(Happy!!!!!)

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎2:26:40 AM): A store close by was fun to explore!

 

(This is obviously.the place where ninjas shop. Haha!)

 

(Awesome Cloud figurine… Not For Sale. :P)

 

(Awesome Berserk figurine… Not For Sale. :P)

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎2:35:28 AM)

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎2:46:36 AM)

 

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎2:57:04 AM) I love riding the trains!

 

 

(They have seats reserved for mothers with babies, pregnant women, old people, and the handicapped.)

We got to go on the Navy ship that Jason worked on. I started feeling sea sick soon, though.

 

(Tuesday, ‎January ‎13, ‎2009, ‏‎5:27:48 AM): This mini statue of a geisha getting tattooed was pretty amazing. 🙂

 

(To Be Continued…)

 

My First Visit to Japan (Part 2)

 

 

Did you know that Resident Evil is called Biohazard in Japan? I did. I’m a huge RE dork, so it was awesome to actually see it on the shelves over there. No use trying to buy the games, though. They’re incompatible with the U.S. systems. 😛

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:36:36 AM)

 

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:38:30 AM)

Man, I wanted to play this…

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:48:18 AM): And eat these… Mmm…

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:48:24 AM): I see Onigiri! 

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:49:04 AM): These are all from the grocery store. 😀

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:51:28 AM): Chu-Hi’s and other various alcoholic beverages! OmnOmnOm!

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:51:36 AM): I had to grab a couple single cans of Japanese beer to try. They all were pretty strong and hoppy. After this, I could really see why people say Bud Light tastes like piss water. 

 

 

Cigarette Vending Machine.

 

Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎1:58:10 AM): Hey, Check out that girl at the check-out! xD You package your own things with plastic wraps and tape and stuff. 🙂

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎2:03:00 AM): It’s easy to get addicted to the toy machines… This one appears to be 200Yen… 

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎2:04:14 AM): Omgah! Can we please go play in Plaza Capcom!? 😀

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎2:50:56 AM): Negishi All Hands Club for dinner on the Navy Base!

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎2:52:00 AM): After a good search, my sister finds us some delicious Jager to drink. Yum!

 

 

I got Kakashi out of a mystery box! He even has his Make-Out Paradise book. Hahaha

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎3:18:34 AM): My sister cooks up a feast!

 

 

I discovered my favorite beer ever! Leinenkugel’s Berry Weiss. Mmm…

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎4:26:00 AM): OmGoodness!

 

 

She even carves the Roast Beast! (Dorky Grinch reference…)

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎10:52:26 PM): Even the Instant Ramen wasn’t so bad. Yummy breakfast.

 

 

(Wednesday, ‎January ‎07, ‎2009, ‏‎11:35:24 PM): Nicholas is giving me the A-Town Down.

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:26:56 AM): Jason, Lisa, and I downed a few starter drinks before setting off on an adventure.

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:29:24 AM): JagerBomb Squad!

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:29:36 AM): This awesome bartender has the good stuff. He gave me a cool fake key keychain that hides a razorblade inside, too. ^_^!

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:29:46 AM): Jason has a secret message for Lisa…

 

 

 

(Secret message = i c Lisa!)

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:32:34 AM)

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:43:26 AM): I decided to play photographer and take candid shot of these two cheeseball lovebirds throughout our adventure. ;D Here they are counting out some Yen for the bus.

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:43:38 AM): Zoom! Zoom!

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:44:52 AM): Dawwww…

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:46:24 AM)

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:51:32 AM): Blurrrrr

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:52:32 AM): “What…?!” xD

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:55:08 AM): I love Japanese housing and architecture. 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:57:14 AM): “Hey Lisa, look at that dude sittin’ by himself…”

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎2:57:56 AM): Yoink!

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:00:22 AM): View on the Japanese bus!

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:00:32 AM): They have Denny’s? 😛

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:11:42 AM): I actually spotted a few Gold’s Gyms.

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:20:24 AM): Nice view!

 

 

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:21:38 AM): Japanese Urinal. (I was curious!)

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:22:06 AM): Oh man, I miss Japanese toilets…

 

They have warmed seats and remotes on the side that do interesting things. Hahaha!

I’m glad they have pictures. I wasn’t up for trying out the bidet…

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:26:02 AM)

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:26:16 AM)

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:28:22 AM): We were sad that my brother, Michale wasn’t able to come.)

 

We were going to go to this amusement park together.

 

We took it as a sign when we found out that it was closed. I guess we weren’t supposed to go without him. 😀

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:31:52 AM): Some cool building…

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:32:56 AM): There was even a place beside the park that said MYCAL… lol

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:42:28 AM): So, we went ice-skating!

 

(Thursday, ‎January ‎08, ‎2009, ‏‎3:43:04 AM): This thing was displaying some sort of animation with weird music. it was cool to stand under and watch…

 

 

(To Be Continued…)

 

 

My First Visit to Japan!

Nothing compares to that moment you leave your country to fly around the world and visit a faraway place. Nothing. Especially, if you are going to Japan!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEmJ-VWPDM4 <—Had to.

So, I worked a triple double shift all weekend at my waitressing job and one of those nights  was New Year’s Eve on the floor by myself. I sold over a thousand dollars! After my last shift of the week sped home to pack my things and hop on a plane stand-by in business class on the way to visit my sister in Japan!!!!!

(Sunday, ‎January ‎04, ‎2009, ‏‎7:29:32 AM): I captured a guy wearing a purple Dora the Explorer bookbag on the concourse at the Airport in Atlanta. 😀

(Sunday, ‎January ‎04, ‎2009, ‏‎8:43:06 AM): There was a cool bit of taxidermy near my gate. I think it was a Hyena.

(Sunday, ‎January ‎04, ‎2009, ‏‎8:21:32 AM): It was super foggy when my plane arrived. It made me nervous…(Sunday, ‎January ‎04, ‎2009, ‏‎5:18:20 PM): I was really excited when I got on the plane and realized I was in First Class! The food was really yummy and drinks unlimited. 😉

The seats were so comfy and spacious. I felt like a BOSS!

(Sunday, ‎January ‎04, ‎2009, ‏‎10:01:38 PM): Mmm… Pasta!(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎12:01:42 AM): And then, I WAS THERE!!!!!(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎12:21:00 AM): I claim my baggage! 😛

I got yelled at for taking this picture of the Customs Mascot. (But he was so cute!) :3

(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎12:44:26 AM): After converting some money into Yen, figuring out how to buy a phone card and call my sister on the japanese payphone, and buying tickets… I hop on the YCAT for an hour. Oh man! I miss the Japanese vending machines! The Hot items, like soup, coffee, and tea, are labeled Red and the cold items are labeled Blue!

(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎2:05:14 AM): My family was there waiting when I arrived. 😀 (Nephew, Sister, and Bro-in-Law)(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎2:23:12 AM): It was so weird to see people drive on the other side of the road. I admittedly tried to get into the wrong side of the car a few times. lol(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎2:23:24 AM): Big Crab!(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎2:31:02 AM): I was a bit nervous about how fast everyone was driving through these tiny little roads! They looked like one way streets, too small for more than one car!(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎2:34:36 AM): Here’s the view of a cool building near my sister’s home.

Umm… How do I take a shower with this exactly…? Hahaha

My nephew, Nicholas. 🙂(Monday, ‎January ‎05, ‎2009, ‏‎7:45:02 PM): I wake up to, not one……But two cute doggies lying on me.Hi, Lacey!xD(Cheeeeeeeese!)

(To Be Continued…)

The First Cries of Eeo

As I type this, there is an adorable little monkey sleeping on my chest.

*****Week One*****

Once upon a time,
I was pregnant with a cute little baby named Eeo.

 

I went to the doctor for a checkup on Monday, December 3rd and they were concerned that the baby wasn’t moving enough.
They hooked me up to a baby monitor.

That massive lump on the right side is Eeo pushing through my belly. 😀

I was sent to the Hospital for another round on a baby monitor and an ultrasound, which resulted in me bursting out in a fit of laughter during and Eeo still wasn’t active enough for the technician.

 

 

They told me to come back to the Hospital for another test the next day at 8:30AM.

I went through the same thing,
baby monitor, then ultrasound (where I finally found out that Eeo was a girl!). I was exactly 37 weeks that Tuesday.
I went back to the room with the baby monitor in it and got ready to leave, but the nurse came in and hooked me back up to it. I was a bit confused as to why and thought I was okay to go home. Another nurse came in to tell me that Eeo had the same test results as the day before and wasn’t moving enough. She told me that it appeared that she wasn’t practicing breathing in the womb and they had to call a specialist to see what they should do.
After a bit, she came back to tell me that I was about to be admitted to the Hospital for an induction so they could get the baby out.
Eeo’s due date was December 25th! I was so worried, nervous, and unprepared that I had a panic attack right then and there until I heard something funny on the baby monitor and worried that my panic would make things worse for her, so I calmed down immediately.
I thought I was going to have three more weeks to prepare for all of this…
Mentally… Physically… Emotionally…
Maybe even talk myself out of my fear of Hospitals a little bit…
But, no.
They wanted her out then, and I soon had my new Hospital room set up and my sister was on the way to join me for support.

At 4:20PM, I was induced with Cervidil. An insert that readies or “ripens” the cervix, yet takes up to 12 hours to do it’s job. It was an uphill climb through 12 hours of being induced, unable to eat or drink anything and I could not fall asleep with oncoming contractions, constant nurses checking in, and beeping machines. Whenever it eventually reached 4:20AM, my cervix was checked and I was only dilated at 1.7. The contractions were at the point where they felt like my entire pelvic bone and region were getting smashed with a sledgehammer… one every two minutes or less with increasing intensity in waves.
The doctor told me that every time I had a contraction, the baby’s blood pressure dropped and they were worried that if they upped the induction with Pitocin, she would have complications through labor and we might have to have an Emergency Cesarean Section.
So, the next idea was to go ahead and have a planned C section.

The mere thought of this absolutely freaked me out!

I asked the doctor and nurses a million questions (including, “what if I freak out?!”), and they decided to wait a little bit longer and see if anything changed.
For about an hour, I laid there with intensifying pain, no meds, and rapid logical thoughts about the situation as I tried to talk myself into everything. I couldn’t help but think that this day just kept getting more and more serious and terrifying. At some point, I thought, “Well, that escalated quickly!” And I felt more calm and considered that doing the C section now would be better than going through a lot more pain and trouble that could cause problems for my little baby and end up becoming an Emergency C Section anyways(which I’d decided would be a lot more scary than one that was planned ahead!).

Right before I could call the nurses and tell them LET’S DO THIS!
They came in and told me that nothing was changing on the monitor. I told them that I’d thought about it and they were right and gave them the okay and instantly the scene changed quicker than a theatre set. I went from being in a very quiet, dim room alone with my sister and a visit from a nurse every 30 minutes or so, to the lights being cut on and I’m being wheeled into the hallway, down the hall, and to a bright operating room with about fifteen doctors and nurses introducing themselves to me with masks on and all kinds of things going on so fast it made my head spin. The whole time, I was having painful contractions and I was so terrified, tired, nervous, hungry, uncomfortable, and freaked out that I was shaking violently. I somehow managed to scoot onto the operating table, willingly, and they sat me up to give me the shots in my back to numb me from the chest down. It felt like what I imagine a scorpion sting might feel like in my lower back and a nurse held my shoulders and coaxed me into it.
I was laid back down and began to feel my lower body tingle as my arms were spread straight out as if I were being crucified. I was still shaking uncontrollably and never relented until an hour after the operation was over.
I fixed my gaze on anything that would keep me from thinking about what was going on beyond the blue sheet they curtained at my chest as the doctors discussed various things with one another. I felt my body being shifted yet felt nothing but warmth. From my chest down, My body felt like a heavy, warm pantyhose type of bag filled entirely with sand.
My sister joined the room and soon after, I heard the first cries of Eeo which sounded more like a struggling cat than a baby crying. I was nervous about her and her lungs, but she was fine. My sister ran to take pictures and came back to me to show me what she looked like as I was feeling my guts being tugged on in another dimension. It took them about five minutes to slice her out of my belly, but around 30 or something to fix me back up. They brought her to my face for what seemed like ten seconds for me to see her before she was swooped off to get cleaned up and get shots or whatever else.
I was relieved that she was okay and felt that the zenith of my fear had been overcome at that point and a steady downhill slope was on its way.
As I was being put together again, I heard the doctor on the other side say “Uh oh…”
I listened and heard him say it twice more and this is where I began to notice that the doctors were conversating as if they were out to brunch with each other. My anaesthesiologist place a hand on my head and told me not to worry and that the doctors were just bullshitting with each other and those “Uh oh”s were not meant for me. That was reassuring and we soon began to discuss Anthropology and its applications in various workplaces. I talked about studying the Occupy Movement and he asked me if I thought it was a worthless endeavor that those protestors were out there for. We rabbled on until the sheet came down and I was cleaned up and lifted onto another bed to be wheeled away to a recovery area for an hour.

So, Eeo was born at 6:50AM on December 5th, 2012. She was 6 pounds and 7 ounces. 19 inches of cuteness long. 😀

Here she is with her Aunt Lisa. ❤

Much Love, ~Kimlee Nguyen Davis ❤