It's so hard to say good-bye :'(

A few weeks ago I posted that some of my friends were leaving Japan in coming weeks. The time has now pasted and they are all gone :( I know everyone reading this has had people move away, or you yourself have moved away. When I came to Japan I didn't really expect to make such good friends. I don't really remember what I expected. I certainly didn't expect having everyone leave would be so hard on me. It is hard for me to describe what it is like. Friendships in Japan are different than at home. We become close on a level that doesn't happen at home. We become more like family. However, unlike family, we all live so far away from each other, we can't be certain we will ever see each other again. Even if we do, it won't be the same and we won't be all together. Still, I am thankful I met such wonderful people in Japan. I will miss them so much.

Pictured is some people who left. Not everyone is who left is pictured. Next to me is Cat, who went back to the UK. The tall brown haired stud Cat's boyfriend Adam who also went back to the UK. In the front Liyan (the girl with the glasses) went back to Singapore. I will love them forever.

Snake!

I had something funny happen on Tuesday morning. After I moved to my new place my cat Chloe was kind of anxious being in a new territory. She would whine a lot. So I started keeping the sliding back door open a bit in the evenings so she can come and go as she pleases, because she doesn't whine at me when the door is open. Lately I haven't been doing it as much because she seems to have adjusted, so I told myself by winter time, no more open back door.

On Tuesday morning Chloe woke me up at 4am because she wanted out. She likes to follow me everywhere I go and the night before I had gone out for a walk. I didn't want her to come, so I made her stay inside. Because of that she slept a lot and was ready to get up early. I let her out, ate some breakfast and went back to sleep keeping the door open. I didn't want to get up again to let her in, otherwise she whines outside until I let her in. I usually wear earplugs, but I didn't want anything in my ear because I had an ear infection last week.

At about 6:30 I woke up to some noise in my living room (my bed room is just off the living room). Chloe had just gotten some new toys from Emily and I thought she was playing with them. I told her to shut up and tried to go back to sleep. She kept playing though, so I finally turned over and looked into the living. Imagine my surprise when I saw a snake slithering across my living room floor. It was hissing at Chloe and she was playing with it.

The snake was skinny, but long (maybe three feet?). To be honestly with you, I really wanted to just go back to sleep and deal with it later. Then I called my brother on Skype. As I was telling him I started to feel faint. He told me to put the camera on Chloe. I did, but the snake was under a cushion. I wanted to move the cushion to show him the snake, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I really started to feel faint at that point. He told me to go get my other friends in Bando and to close all the doors so the snake doesn't go into another room.

I did what he said and I went to my friend Milada's house. I must have been in shock. When we got back to my place wasn't anywhere to be found and Chloe was relaxing on the floor. I thought Milada and Nick (her boyfriend who is visiting) would think I was crazy. I also realized in my panic I had failed to close the door to my bedroom.

Both of my fears were unjustified because Milada noticed the snake under the kotatsu. It wasn't moving as much as when I left. Chloe was really picking on it. She would swat at it and then roll around with it. She was having so much fun. We managed to get Chloe away and then we threw a plastic bin over the snake. Next, we slid cardboard under it. Then we lifted it up and finally took it outside where we released it. It didn't move much, I think it was dying or in shock.

After Milada and Nick left I managed to go back to sleep for a few hours. Before that, I talked to my brother again. I kind of hung up on him on Skype and he was worried. He called me nine times while this was going on. I didn't even know he had my keitai number! I couldn't answer because my keitai was in the same room as the snake! When he realized the snake was gone and I was ok he started laughing because he said Chloe looked so calm when he saw her, she wasn't afraid of the snake at all and she thought she was doing something good by bringing it in! After that I went to bed again. I kept Chloe outside and the door shut. When I woke up and let her in again she started looking for the snake and whining when she couldn't find it! I thought that was so funny.

So now my door is shut all the time. I don't want this to happen ever again!

When I woke up again I remembered Nick had said something like, yay my first snake, or something. I thought it was odd because he is at least 40 and never had to deal with a snake? Then I remembered he is from Ireland, Ireland doesn't have snakes! They legend goes Saint Patrick drove all of the snakes into the sea, that one of the reasons why he is remembered. Milada (who is from Ireland too) and Nick were much calmer than me. I have seen many snakes, but I guess it is different when they are in your house! I don't know what I would have done without them.