I am not objecting, mind you. Not at all.
I had a few curious events happen this week, including one definite miracle, which I will save for last (read as: scroll down for the awesome bit).
First, I would like to make an addition to my growing list of reasons I am not a fan of skirts on bikes. I do not know if I have made this list yet, in which case I will start now!
Why I Don't Like Skirts on Bikes
- The skirt gets caught in the wind at embarrassing moments
- It sometimes reduces movement and range
- Standing at a stop light and remaining modest is nearly impossible (you have to stay seated)
- The skirt gets caught in the chain/back wheel resulting in huge and ugly black stains
- Skirts grab onto shoes during mounting and cause bike accidents
The last addition I only discovered this week, when I got into a bike accident. Not a bad accident, mind you; it was a collision between me and the ground, see. Now, I'll admit partial blame, but really I think the ground ought to take some responsibility for all of this.
It happened when I was getting on my bike in a parking lot. I was wearing a skirt I was not used to and my spare shoes, so it wasn't the best combination. My shoe got caught in my dress as I was raising it over the frame bar, and instead of my shoe coming down nicely on the pedal it remained caught somewhere near the bike seat. The bike, however, was expecting a foot to push down on the pedal to get things started, so when no foot came down it hesitated, tapped a slight bump and fell over. Naturally it fell over directly onto my jutting knee.
I will not lie: it hurt a LOT.
So now we have a collapsed bike, a surprised companion, and a missionary in pain. Worse yet, we have a ruined pair of nylons. There was a HUGE hole in the knee! I was stuck with hole-in-the-knee nylons and a good trek away from a new pair. It was most distressing.
Seriously. My knee still hurts and I'm limping still, but I am most upset about the nylons. I have yet to find nylons my size in Japan which means I have to make do with what I brought. A hole in mandatory irreplaceable clothing is a big deal!
Anyway, I'll get over it. At least it was an older pair of nylons.
The bike is fine, by the way. I haven't checked in with the ground's family but I believe he's fine.
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Second, I wanted to wish everyone a happy July 4th! This is not a holiday in Japan for some weird inexplicable reason. Still my companion and I celebrated by getting 'steaks' (minced meat shaped into a rectangle beef patty) on Saturday night. It was actually pretty neat; they brought the meat out done "medium" with a tiny little hot plate about 2 inches in diameter and told us we were free to cook the meat to our desired doneness. It was a neat trick although sadly the hot plate got cold about halfway through the meal. Still, I liked the idea and enjoyed the meal. It was the first trip to a restaurant this transfer!
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The next trip to a restaurant was a district lunch at Popoki. Popoki is a tiny little restaurant (barely enough room for the bar where you sit) crammed full of amazing souvenirs from all over the world. The owner has these souvenirs because he has BEEN all over the world -- he takes a vacation once a year and he and his wife travel like demons. The restaurant can only sit 10 but it is a lot of really good food at a really good price, so naturally he recognized missionaries on sight. It was a yummy lunch and I am amazed I had not been sooner.
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We finally got a chance to use the Goi Bikes! The Goi Bikes might take a brief explanation. There is a train station called Goi. It is in our area, but it is a considerable distance from where we live, and thus we don't bike there -- we take the train. Sadly, the people who live in Goi live very far apart and not at all close to the train station, so if you go to visit someone in Goi it's a day trip.
What's the solution?
Old missionaries donate their old bikes to Goi!
That's right, ladies and gentlemen, there are two insanely old bikes parked in the free bike garage (designed, it seems, with this sort of purpose in mind) that missionaries have the lock-key to and are welcome to use at any time. It's perfect! The only trouble is that the brakes are stiff, the chain and gears are shot, and oh, there are no bike seats.
Still, when you have to go to Goi, they are perfect. We finally gave them a shot and at one point were even able to achieve the daring speeds of 6 mph! We laughed and joked and were really grateful for the bikes since they turned a 30 minute walk in the hot humidity into a bizarre but simple bike ride. Woohoo!
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I have finally, FINALLY met someone who was so happy to be greeted in the street by strangers that she burst into tears and hugged us. She called her friend to say how she had met such wonderful people and told us we had changed her life.
It was awesome, frankly.
She wasn't crazy by the way, just a little tipsy. Still, it was a fun experience.
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Okay, I guess I should talk about the awesome wonderful miracle at some point. This blog post has gotten very long anyway. Does anyone remember me talking about a woman who wasn't coming to church very often but finally came back with her friend in tow, and her friend it turns out may or may not have already been a member from a long time ago?
Well many weeks and a few dramas later it turns out she IS a member, and we now have her record. She was so happy! She asked us to contact her family as well, so we have a referral to pass along and a wonderful story.
I'm sorry, I had intended to go into more details but I just realized a great deal of this story isn't really Internet appropriate, in that it's not something for the general public. This woman is truly a miracle who has had a very tough life. Her life will still be tough, and she still has a few problems with visas and the like, but for all of us this was a huge step in the right direction and a blessing. I am extremely excited for her and adore her, and I look forward to seeing how everything will turn out for her and her family.
Speaking of which, I need to go give the honbu (HQ) a referral, so I had best be going soon.
It is raining today. Japan is too humid for a poor lil' desert girl like me, and I am VERY MUCH looking forward to the end of the rainy season. It can't possibly be too much longer...right?
It doesn't make sense to me that rain should make the temperature hotter, but I have been proven wrong thanks to local weather.
Love you all lots, talk to you again soon!
