From Pennies To Yennies

Oh, hi!

I have just finished packing my bags for my official move to Japan. I spent the weekend with family, cleaning my mother’s house and parting with clothing and other things that have no place in my shoebox of an apartment in Setagaya, Tokyo. Tomorrow I will see my friends one last time, then first thing Tuesday morning I’m on my way to… Hawaii?

I’m meeting Dan in Hawaii before arriving in Japan. His friend Brent is getting married in Maui (getting Maui’d?) and we’ll be spending 4 days in paradise before flying into Narita.

FAQ: Why are you moving to Japan?

I suppose my story begins last year in Seattle Washington. I resided there with my boyfriend Dan and worked for an HVAC company as an event coordinator. Dan is a software developer for Microsoft. Dan expressed interest to his boss about a possible transfer to their Japan offices and the opportunity had finally arrived. Through several interviews and application hoops, he landed a position at their Chofu office and was due to start work late September 2010. I had mixed feelings. On the one hand, what an amazing opportunity! On the other hand, I CAN’T JUST UP AND MOVE TO ASIA.

So I opted not to go with him. We had a busy summer of preparing for his international move and my figuring out what I wanted to do. It was at this time my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was incredibly upsetting for our family. My mother lives in Portland, Oregon, along with my older sister and her husband and stepchildren. It became clear almost immediately what needed to be done: Dan would move to Japan and I would move down to Portland to be with my family.

And that’s been life for almost 7 months. I came down early August and settled into my little purple bedroom which I’ve only used for breaks from college terms. My mother and I embarked down a scary path of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation and the side affects of it all. It was an incredibly eye opening experience. I learned that my family will always come first for me. I learned that cancer is a relentless, awful disease that needs as much awareness and funding as possible to hopefully bring a stop to it. I learned that Dan is the person I want to be with always. And ultimately I learned that tragedy can strike at any moment and I need to stop making a big deal out of gossip and Coach’s newest spring line and start living. Hence, I decided to pack my bags and move to Japan.

I have visited twice and have no idea how to get around on my own. I have no knowledge of the Japanese language, besides recently learning Hiragana and some Katakana. I have absolutely no idea what I am doing and this is all incredibly terrifying. It’s just what I need!

Goals:
Obtain employment
Master getting about on my own
Learn a passable amount of Japanese
Meet new people
Eat new things
See amazing places
Live with only what I need

So that’s my story. Saturday March 5th I’m officially exchanging my pennies for some yennies to get by in my new country. I will of course have the help of my boyfriend Dan, but he works long hours which will force me to get out on my own if I want to eat or go places.

Major comforts I’m leaving in America:
My CAR 🙁
Paying for everything with debit/credit
Delicious food I’m familiar with
Spacious living environments
An abundance of clothing, books, movies, etc

I will hopefully have a wonderful update from Maui. The last time I saw Dan was Christmas time, so I’m looking forward to spending time with him again after being apart for 2 months!