Torture.

I'd be the easiest person in the world to torture for information. Just put me in solitude for 24 hours and I will start screaming: "Please! I'll tell you whatever you want!! Just let me out of here!! I need human contact!"

Sarra needs bentos.

Do you hear that, Typhoon Muifa? You did it; you drove me to the point of despair! What do you want to know??! I will tell you anything! Just please, please, please! Let me outdoors. Let me breathe fresh air and laugh and eat fresh fruit! I am BEGGING YOU!!

It's not like I've been alone all the time, either. I spent almost 24 hours at Sarra's watching movies and eating constantly, and about 12 hours at Max's after I came over for dinner and got trapped when the storm unexpectedly grew stronger. These friends have been amazing, and I'm so glad I wasn't alone all this time, but I still feel all the energy leaving my body. I feel the mad desperation of a person tortured for many hours, on the verge of breaking entirely.


Please, typhoon Muifa! What do you WANT from me?!  You ragging maniac, let us out of here!!!!

In Songda's Wake

Here are some photos (click to view them larger) and stories from the day after Super Typhoon Songda. It was certainly the strongest natural force I had ever personally encountered. Hopefully the worst I ever will. 

The storm was so loud on Saturday night that it was impossible for me to fall asleep in my room next to the rattling glass windows. To solve that problem, I took the futon and slept on the kitchen floor. It was still unbelievable loud in there, but not as terrifying. It was kind of like camping. 

The next morning, I woke up to partially blue skies and birds singing happily.  

See the bird?

At that point, I'd been stuck in my apartment for about a million years, so I had to get out. Since I still didn't have a car, I decided a bike ride would suit me just fine. 

I set out and immediately started to note the damage the typhoon had caused.  

My how the mighty have fallen. 

Repairmen were out first thing in the morning to work on this roof. 

It was no match for those extreme winds. 

 About halfway through the ride, Wang joined me on her bike. 

My biking companion and coworker, Miss Wang. :)

Wang's door had only a small crack before the storm. 

My favorite walking/biking path was completely inaccessible. 

Trees weren't the only casualties, either.  I saw more dead birds than I care to count, but I won't post pictures of that here. Heh. 

I wonder why the power is out... 

 After taking a slight detour around all the blocked roads and paths, we finally arrived at Mibaru Beach. 

It looks nice without any boats in the water, huh?

 The whole area had lost power so it was nearly impossible to find something to drink. Of course the vending machines don't work when the power's out! But we got to watch the beach stuff put some of the boats back in the sea, and we eventually found a grocery store which would sell us luke-warm cola. Ahhh... refreshing. 

 At the end of the bike ride, Wang cooked me some delicious yakisoba (fried noodles). I still didn't have power at my apartment. So I was happy to accept her generosity. ;)  

 My power was eventually restored but I was out enjoying the post-typhoon weather (more about that later), so I didn't notice until after 10 p.m. I was actually pretty lucky to get power the next day! The students in the dorms had no power AND no water for two days! My poor, stinky students. 

Exploring Risotto

I've been stuck in my apartment all day because of this impending storm (and because my car is stranded in Naha... long story), and the boredom is starting to crush me. I've watched at least 13 episodes of "Bones" today, have cleaned about 75% of my house, and have cooked two big meals. 

Right now, the storm is raging strongly. The wind and rain and slamming against all the windows and doors. The power flickered a few times and is now out completely. That leaves me, 1 hour of laptop battery, some candles, and nothing to do. So... I will tell you about risotto! 

Creamy chicken tomato risotto with cheddar cheese (and a yummy pickle garnish). 

I like cooking dishes that are easily variable to fit the random contents of my fridge (like fried rice! you can just throw anything in there!), and risotto fits the bill! So far I have made it with cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, and, today, chicken broth and canned tomatoes: 

Tomato Risotto cooked chicken broth and a yellow pepper garnish. 

Sometimes vegetables can be pretty expensive in the grocery store, so I like to buy whatever I can find at the local veggie stand. Campbell's soup is also pricey, so I just pick up whatever I can find at a good price. 

It's a lot of fun to totally improvise a meal. It makes me feel like I can actually get by in this world and make my own meals. Pretty novel, right? 

Well, that's the end of my typhoon-boredom-power-outage ramblings. The wind sounds either like a demon train of destruction or like the world's largest chair scraping loudly and painfully across the world's largest wooden floor. Kinda creepy. Now I'm going to take my candles, flashlight, and a book to bed and hope the wind quiets down enough for me to sleep at some point tonight. 

Goodnight, Super Typhoon Songda. You were fun for like a minute, now go away. 

Weekend Plans

What I have to look forward to this weekend: 

Don't worry, mom, I have an emergency kit ready, 

and I know better than to drive or walk around in a "super typhoon." 

This is all anyone can talk about today (myself included), but it's hard to feel any real concern when every other typhoon warning has brought little more than a heavy tropical rain. Logically, I hope that this typhoon is similarly anti-climactic, but there's a twisted little part of me (the same part in every person who cranes his/her neck to catch a glimpse of disaster) that hopes the hype isn't for nothing this time.

Besides, I'm from Idaho. I like power outages.

A lovely, stormy day

The storm woke me from an unpleasant dream about crashing into the ocean at about 4 a.m., and when I got up again at 8:30 it was still raging. Maybe not the ultimate typhoon of all time, but bigger and windier and rainier than anything I have ever experienced.

So I debated for awhile, analyzed the abilities of my little car (bare tires... small size... squeaky brakes...), and decided to delay my plans for the day. This meant, unfortunately, missing some awesome fellowship at my new church, but I remembered my dream and d

ecided to play it safe.

Instead, I took pancake batter, fried honey-apples, and chocolate chips down the road to An Yang's and made breakfast. They turned out alright (I still need to find food coloring!). 

Then I chilled out there for awhile and waited for a break in the weather, hoping to salvage at least some of our plans for the day. Around 2:00 we thought the weather had calmed so we decided to chance it, but walking down her steps was a fight for life and driving was no better. The winds beat that little car around the road like a cat batting yarn, and despite having my windshield wipers on high, visibility was low. After hydro planing (sp?) for the second time, An and I gave up our plans for good, and drove back to my apartment. 

Once safely in my little haven, we popped popcorn, closed the curtains, and hunkered down to watch "Taken." We both agree that this movie ROCKS, and that watching a suspenseful movie is the best plan for a stormy day. The winds shaking the windowpanes added some great ambience. :)

OooOOOoooo stormy!

After the movie, I cleaned like a crazy person while An cooked Chahan (chinese fried rice), and we ate our dinner happily while the wind hissed and the rain sputtered outside. I tried to open my door once and it slammed back in my face. How rude.

From the safety of my barred windows. 

At one point, I got a surprising knock on my door. Wondering who could be out in this weather, I opened the door cautiously to find my neighbor, wrapped in a trash bag, drowning in the downpour. I asked her to come in, and she, in broken English (bless her!), told me that my car lights were on. This blew me away!! She not only went out of her way to tell me, but did so in the downpour of the summer (if not century! /exaggeration)! So sweet.

The storm has passed on by now, tormenting other areas of the island I am sure, and I am happy with this rainy day. Despite the disappointment of ruined plans, the storm gave me the chance to clean, to relax, and to cook. All things which I have needed greatly.

So, bring on the next typhoon! And make it a good one. :)