Time to say goodbye...
The picture on the left was taken in March 2006 in Okinawa, Japan... one of the nicest places I've ever been to.
A couple of weeks ago I accepted a position at a new school here in Nagasaki... but the more I thought about my future, the more I realized that I yearned to do more with my life. I want to write again, perhaps even publish a book.
I also want to compete in duathlons again and get involved with charity work.
Most importantly I want to be closer to my family and Canadian friends. This has been one of the hardest decisions of my life.. to stay or leave. I have chosen to go! There is a list of things I will miss and things I wont miss.
Here is what I will not miss
1) Smoking people everywhere
2) The loud welcoming greeting in every store you walk into
3) Tiny clothes that will never fit me
4) Traditional Japanese toilets (squatting to pee is not comfortable)
5) Un-insolated walls.. winters are just too cold in Japanese apartments
6) Narrow roads
7) Processed cheese.. bring on the real stuff baby
8) NATO.. no thanks
9) Noise pollution
10) Concrete beaches
11) Expensive cell phone bills
12) Crowded streetcars
13) Fatty meats
14) Night clubs that are smaller than my bedroom

Things I will miss

1. Friendly people
2. Smiling, carefree kids
3. Warm weather
4. Not having to tip at restaurants
5. Cheap dentist bills
6. 100 yen shops
7. Onsens.. gotta love em
8. Great selection of seafood
9. Free tissues
10. Going bowling with the gang
11. Eating at Ringer Hut at 4 a.m.
12. Free wireless Internet
13. Saturdays in Fukuoka
14. Swimming in the sea
15. My friends and special peeps
16. My students