Nesting Stage...?

I think it's safe to say you know your family is panicking when your mother has the urge to do your chores for you... Yep, it's all becoming pretty crazy around here. With a full page checklist of stuff I'm going to pack, money issues, and the constant visiting, my time is becoming very limited. Not that I am complaining about all this one bit. LOL I'm a person that adores being busy.

The busier I am, the happier I feel. I would feel so lost if I had no school work to complete each day and my chores were non-existent. In fact, you should see me around the time of the near two week Christmas vacation I get every year from school. ;D During the summer break I'm fine because then I go to work at my yearly summer job. But I can't work during that Christmas break period. That means all I have to do is chores (or lack of them in my case...?), no!!

Anyway, my mother has been invading my room putting away a pile of clean clothes that has accumulated in a pile on top of an old bed mattress. Originally, my mom was fine with the clothes being there and I was fine since I wouldn't have to put them away ever, freeing up to time to be busy with other things, yay! Now though she comes and tells me she wishes to put them all neatly away for me and my sister, whom I share the room with. According to her, it's like having another baby and going through "nesting stage". Now I've heard numerous comparisons by many different people on the subject of my study abroad decisions. I mean, before the strangest I've heard was one friend telling me it's like she is giving her pet dog away to another home, but my mom's recent statement takes the cake. o.o

I guess she was just trying to say how she wants to be prepared for when I go, so in a way that makes it less strange, but still she's not getting another kid, she's losing one for a year. LOL Oh mom, you're funny sometimes, but always so awesome~

In other news, my VISA lady got back to me saying that I did indeed get the full year one, to which I responded by throwing my arms up in the air and telling my dead asleep sister the news. XD It would have really been horrible if I had to pay $60.00 each time for it to be extended. D:

Also, I probably should have mentioned this much earlier, but a big shout out to my older sister who kindly brought me the best gift thus far in my Thai adventure. It's a green tie-dye beach bag with pictures of Thai Buddha on it and she was so funny when she gave it to me and brought it over. LOL I think she really wanted to know if I liked it, so if you're reading this sis, know that I am taking that to Thailand and using it at the beach~ Once my camera stops being a pain, I'll post pictures of it here on this post, so check back here for updates often.

To conclude to lovely bit of information I've decided to throw into one post, I'll say that my time blogging will be limited during the first few weeks after I leave. Especially don't expect me to be blogging on the 28th of March...I'm up in the plane pretty much all day, yay~ DX Once I do get in the mood to blog, it'll be sure to be something interesting. Until then though, expect this to be my last post in America. Lovely country it is, but I am excited to see others. <3

Last Month in America

Wow, March is already here... Kind of getting nervous and scared, but more so excited. Actually, none of these feelings are visible. LOL As much as I would like to be jumping up and down shouting to the world, "I am going to Thailand for a year!" I cannot seem to find the effort. Maybe I still don't believe I am actually going or something, isn't that funny? XD

Well I can't say I don't think about it. Today I went to get my mom a newspaper and I wasn't going to buy anything else except the newspaper, but an ice-cream treat(that I am eating while I write this. LOL) caught my eye and I brought it too. The reason I did was because I was thinking that I might not get to eat this kind of ice-cream for a whole year. I mean, not to say Thailand might not have ice-cream, it just might be different than the types we have in America. Got to be prepared for everything, ya know~

Anyway, getting to the point of today's entry, I was thinking I should make a post the month before I leave for Thailand and a month before I leave to come back to America just reflecting on the society of each country. Now, obviously it would take a three book series to write down all the aspects of American culture and society, so to save time and writing cramps, I'll just split it up into categories:

Best of America

Best Thing I Enjoy About American Shopping -

I would have to say I love having access to so much culture in America. I have been told by Internet friends in other countries that they get items such as video games, anime*, and even restaurants much slower than us, or sometimes not at all. I am so glad I live in a country that basically has everything available as long as you look hard enough.

Best Thing I Enjoy in my American Family -

Anime night! Every Saturday night, my whole family sits around to watch an anime series from start to finish. Of course, some series are really long so multiple anime nights are needed in order to finish them, but that's practically the best part~ I am so thankful to live in a family that enjoy anime as much as I do.

Best Thing I Like About American Attitude -

Americans have big dreams that we feel we can act out. There are very few Americans I have met that are just content with where they are. We all want to excel to something greater. All together we're such a positive society.

Best Place I Have Been to in America -

Florida. I went there once for a two week vacation and it was the best time of my life. So warm and there's a lot of cool little critters. Lizards are like squirrels here in the North. LOL The whole atmosphere was relaxing too. I hope to go back.

Best American Food -

Pizza. It's very hard to learn to make pizza really well, but once you learn how, you'll never forget. Pizza is also easily customizable. Once I saw a restaurant with taco pizza. LOL

Best Thing I Like About American Language, English -

It's easy to write. It takes only a few seconds to write out a sentence where as in other languages like Japanese, Chinese, or Korean, it can take several lines just to make one letter. Of course, this could just be my lack of experience in writing in other languages.

Best Free Time in America -

Hanging out on the Internet, haha!

Worst of America

Worst Thing About American Shopping -

The store clerks never leave you alone! You go into someplace to buy one thing and they bombard you with deals you aren't even remotely interested in so it takes you a good five minutes to find what you need after you say your not interested in any of the deals. LOL

Worst Thing in my American Family -

Hmm, I don't think I have anything here. I mean, my family's got its downs, but overall it's the best family ever. I hope my Thai family will be the same. :D

Worst Thing About American Attitude -

Is it just me, or do most Americans think that every country other than the U.S. is living in poverty? O.o I personally think this thinking is really rude to citizens of other countries by thinking this way.

Worst Place I Have Been to in America -

On a "date" with a guy who kept perving on my sister and I. I wanted to leave, desperately. D:

Worst American Food -

Burgers and ground meat. Ugh, I don't care how often my family travels to McDonald's, I will never eat one, even if they make it homemade. Never!

Worst Thing About American Language, English -

There's many words and grammar! If my English teacher is reading this, you should know that a lot of other languages are a lot simpler in structure. I'm surprised I actually do well in English class...

Worst Free Time in America -

Partying. Okay, I know it's extremely popular with people my age, but I absolutely hate going out just to dance and party. Main problem being that people tend to loose a few IQ points when they go out, even if there is no alcohol involved. Plus, there is nothing to do. I swear all I do when I go to parties is lean against a wall with fruit punch and stare at the clock, hoping my mom will come pick me up soon.


And there you have it~ All my thoughts on America before I depart to a new world. Now I'll try not to look at this list until a month before I come back from Thailand, so my ideas can be fresh. It will be interesting to see if these things are the same in Thailand or completely different. :3

Thanks for reading!

*~*Thai Girl Miki*~*

*anime = Japanese cartoon

Chatting with Sister

So apparently Thai mail service is faster than I thought it would be! My family recieved the letter and my sister has been speaking to me through email and MSN chat all week. LOL This is such a great oppertunity since now I can better prepare myself for the experiance. Yay! I am sure my poor sister has been getting annoyed by all my questions, but she gives me really informative answers so I thank her a lot.

My sister's nickname is Parn and she is about the same age as my American sister(15 years old), but just a few monthes older. She is super nice though! A really shy, yet cute person. She really is excited that I will be living with her for year and makes sure to tell me so everytime I talk to her.

According to her, my brother works in Bangkok and only comes home every so often. Previously though, he lived in France and apparently speaks the best French and English in the whole house. LOL On that note, Parn denies she speaks good English, but I think she does otherwise. I mean, she's able to have intelligent conversations with me and explain everything with detail, hah. Cute little modest girl~

Oh, and I also am going to be having a dog in Thailand. LOL His name is Boom and he is apparently about the same size as my own dog, Sam. But I'll have to see when I get there.

Anyway, this was a just brief update. I'll be sure to fill you in on anything else that comes up~

I Have a Home!

I got so much done today. I have all the materials for my VISA, so I can send that in soon. And I also made my domestic flight arrangments. The best of all though, is that today I got the information for the host family I will be staying with in Thailand! I have a mom, dad, an older brother, and a sister who is close to my age. I cannot wait to meet them all. I am planning on writing them a letter, since I have their address. I will blog again when I find out more about them.

The province I am going to live in is Ratchaburi. And it looks so beautiful~ See?

These are just some pictures I found on Google Images. When I actually get there, I'll be sure to take some more! If you want to look where specifically Ratchaburi is on the map, well I have that too:

Google is so useful. LOL

Now you've got the specifics of where I am going. It's certainly exciting. Well actually. It was exciting a long time ago, but now it's just plain awesome. Oi, I want to leave now. XD

Laptop Decisions

I went to hang out with my Thai friend and his host brother, who is from Pakistan, on Saturday. We deicided to go play laser tag, which neither of them had done since coming to America. They had a blast! And my sister, mother, and I did too. My mom thought it was interesting how even though they were from two different countries they both acted like brothers who had known each other their whole lives. I guess that means I'll be the same way with my host family when I get to Thailand. LOL

While I did have a lot of fun, there were times that we had to wait, such as in the car on the way there, in line, etc. So we all took these times to ask each other a bunch of questions. XD One that I asked was whether or not I should bring my laptop. I had been debating this in my mind for awhile. AFS discourages students from bringing laptops (or other similar devices) with them since they can be a distraction. When studying abroad, these distractions that seem harmless can actually be pretty harmful in the relationship between student and family. For example, students who frequently spend time online may miss out on important family bonding activities.

Another point AFS adds is that laptops can increase the feeling of homesickness. This might seem strange to some of you at first, but there is some logic to it. For example, if a student were to feel homesick and turn to chatting online to people back in America, it would make them want to go back even more. That's certainly not what I want. Plus, laptops can get stolen...

On the other hand, my friends told me that I should bring a laptop because people in Thailand may want to email or chat to me. If I do not have my laptop, then I might not be able to do this, which would cause me to be an outcast. Not that I really mind being unpopular, it's just that it would be hard to relate and make connections. My Thai friend also added that as long as I do not spend a bunch of time online talking to people in America, or doing American things, then it should be perfectly fine. And as long as I make sure to use the laptop while in an area of my host house where there is family members I can talk to, my host family should not mind. Plus, there are backpacks available for purchase that are meant to protect laptops from theft.

From all this, I think I am leaning more towards bringing one, especially since I want to keep up with this blog. But I'm not quite sure. So if anyone out there is reading this, what do you think? Let me know in the comments. Thanks!

Also! A fabulous shout out to Mary Kate Lyons! For being the first subscriber to the blog! :3 *throws confetti*

*~*Thai Girl Miki*~*

Luggage Tags

Got my AFS luggage tags in the mail today! My mom told me that it was really going to happen, and I think this upcoming adventure is starting to become real for me.

Another random update. But I am hanging out with a Thai friend of mine this weekend. Hopefully I can get some more tips for living in Thailand while having a good time. :D

Travel Dates

Woot! Today I recieved the flights and days I'll be traveling in my email. It really is starting to feel real, like I I actually am going to be in Thailand very soon. I can hardly wait. I practically feel like just packing up my stuff and flying down to the departing city right now. LOL

Okay, enough of all my mushy excitment. XD The days I'll be traveling are basically March 24th to the 30th, so I would not expect any updates during this time period. Not only will I probably not have access to a computer, but I'll probably be suffering from my first case of jet lag. Oh boy! LOL

One thing I am certainly looking forward to throughout tall the freakin' traveling will be to visit Japan. Yes, folks I am chaining flights. I leave from California to Tokyo, Japan and then proceed to Thailand. So for a very brief moment in time I will be in the country that started my interest with Asian culture. Yush, life is good!~

I'll update on any more excitment that follows!

Thanks for reading

*~*Miki of Feathers*~*