Were Everybody Knows your name, at 7:00am on a Monday.

One way to judge a new culture is by examining there drinking habits. Early Portuguese missionaries to Japan noted the lavish and boisterous drinking parties enjoyed by the reserved and tempered people the were trying to preach to. Roman expeditionarys exploring the northern frontier noted that for the Germanic tribesmen "to pass an entire day and night in drinking disgraces no one."
In that spirit I preset to you Bucky's Cocktail Lounge, a little watering hole nestled one the corner of my block. Apparently this bar is always open, this photo was in fact taken at 7:00 in the morning on a Monday. It's not uncommon to see people stammering out of the joint at 12:00 in the afternoon. I suppose if there were a military base, or a coal mine, nuclear power plant perhaps, some sort of industry that requires people to work 24 hours a day a 24 hour bar would not seem so out of place but this is just San Mateo California.

Our new hood

Well I know it's taken a little while to update the old blog, and when I say a little while I mean about half a year. Well after much couch surfing, three moves, and marathon apartment searching for about three months we finally believe we have arrived. We are now living in San Mateo California which is only about a 20 minute drive from downtown San Francisco.

What made us chose San Mateo and not San Francisco you ask, well I'll tell ya. The air is clean, the people are friendly, and when you wake up in the morning you'll never find someone sleeping on top of your car. We quickly discovered that San Francisco is a great place to visit, there are unbelievable events and venues; its a vast cultural and intellectual melting pot spewing forth revolutionary art, music, and ideas; but if you don't have to live there don't!

We've found a great, quite apartment that's within walking distance of our jobs, now all we have to do is fill it up with some furniture and we should be all set.

Were Looking for a few Cute animated warriors

When I cracked open the old blog I found a post that I had made while in Japan and it was just collecting dust. Well I hope you enjoy this little blast from the past.

I hate to be one of those foreigners that goes around taking pictures of funny Japanese billboards, misspelled signs, and just plain old weird stuff, but I guess this time I just gotta be that foreigner. This is an actual recruitment billboard for the Japanese civil defence force.

For all of those that fear a remilitarization of Japan, I'm looking at you China and Korea, I present exhibit A for the defense. Coming from a nation who's recruitment campaigns usually involve loud heavy metal music, or some young Jar head cutting the head of of a fire breathing demon there is something refreshing about this add of cute adorable little anime soldiers and sailors.

Three Days in Hamamatsu and in the only photo I take Matt's eyes are closed

When is a small cramped Japanese apartment more than just a small cramped Japanese apartment, well that's when its filled to capacity with more family. Last week Beka and Matt paid the Montgomery household a visit. They are on their way to Tokyo to board the Peace Boat; three months at see spreading peace and love while getting to see 19 different counties in the process. Nothing says togetherness like having to step over your loved ones while they sleeping on a futon in the living room when you have go to the bathroom.