Ok, so it's been about 4 full days of being back. Chris seems to be sleeping pretty normally now, but I've been waking up between 2-4 am wide awake and not able to go back to sleep for a couple hours. This morning I'm feeling awake after sleeping in till about 9:30 this morning. So maybe just a couple more days of this...
Apartment hunting! Less fun than I remember. We want to continue at least some of the walking we did in Japan (we walked a lot!) so it would be nice to live near a small downtown area (with small shops and cafes) that is within reasonable walking distance from our place...because this is so specific it'll just be harder to find.. But I think we can.
Surprises..not too many yet, but we haven't gone out much since being back. The smog really shocked me. Smog everywhere! It has looked much better in the last couple days, but still a shock to fly in and see smog everywhere blanketing most of the Bay Area. Whole Foods cheese section! Amazing looking. So many cheeses and so much cheaper! Gas prices...They were 3.40 when we left (and of course they went up past 4 dollars during the summer we were gone) but still a trip to see gas just above 2 dollars a gallon on the gas station signs.
Not much else I can think of at the moment...Driving again feels normal. Fruits and veggies (at Lucky's at least) are just not anywhere near the same quality as in Japan...here very bland--not good tasting at all from what I bought so far. I'm hoping because it's off-season that is why they aren't good tasting ;) but have yet to try Whole Foods veggies. Makes me want to grow our own fruit and veggies all-the-more! The restaurant we ate at since being back wasn't good at all either... Not sure if we are just now used to really great tasting food and we've gotten much pickier now. Well, there's always cooking at home.
Really nice changes: -Being near family and friends. -The weather! So nice...I love California weather. -The hills are green. -Being able to drive again (at least for now).
I will be doing one more blog entry (probably late this week or early next week), and will be taking a break from blogging for awhile.
