Tokyo Dream

I have made it to the land of the rising sun. I am here and loving it. It is everything and more than I expected. People are everywhere and extremely friendly. Constantly wanting to please you and make you feel welcome. I have only spemt time with the two people helping me find my apartment and dealing with people when purchasing items. And they all are are amazingly polite.

I will get into the night life as soon as possible. Most likely tonight. So not much to say about that...yet. However, the area I am staying now is called Roppongi and is considered the most expensive part of Tokyo. Many Ex-pats (ex-patriots are people who live and work outside their home country...like me) live and work in this area and the Japanese have marketed this area around us. Feeding off of our desire for fancy things, fine wines, beers, food, women and the knack for spending money.
My school is located in this area and I will be down here for some time. Women I work with seem to think the street with all bars for foreigners is a scary place to be. One said to me, "you won't catch me walking down here alone at night".
I went there and it is just a street with bars. She said people try pulling you into the places and I saw nothing of the sort while there. But I understand it is different for women as I have be told many times.

Now I am sure some of the readers are wondering about the women and men of Japan. Yes, they are shorter than me, mostly and i do stand out. Yes, the Japanese women are very beautiful and i do find them very attractive. Are they prettier than the Polish women? Is that what you were going to ask me next? Well, some are and some can't compare. How is that for being diplomatic? But over the next few days, weeks, months and years I will have updates.

Around the city you will see lot's of things to will remind you of English lifestyle. Photos of superstars, buildings, popular companies and name brands. This city is a major metropolitan area. With a local Tokyo population of 12.3 million and a surrounding population including all suburbs is rolls in at a shattering 35,600,000 people!!!! Can you imagine that? You can go the rest of your life without seeing the same person twice if you want, and this is just including the Tokyo area. NOT the rest of Japan.


My apartment I have selected is in an older part of Tokyo. It located on the river close to a famous fishermen's area. The view off the balcony and out my window is amazing. I can't wait to wake up with a cup of coffee and sit with some new friends at night overlooking the lights and water. What do you think? It is going to be a great place. Now, I need my things to arrive from Poland. My shipment was delayed leaving Gdansk and left 10 days after scheduled time. So instead of arriving today....it will be here on the 21st instead. Yet, will not be delivered to my new flat until the end of August. So that means I need to buy a new bed for the guest room to use. I will get a nice relaxing chair and desk for that guest room. Hoping to make it very bright and colorful for you to relax in when you come to visit.

Well that is enough for now. Here I am living The Tokyo Dream. It has just begun!


The rain is coming so i have to get off the corner. Can you see it?

Check back soon for update...i will be waiting for your replies

Finally I return

Sorry everyone for taking so long to write anything. So much has happened in the past month. I am out of Warsaw and in Chicago. That was at the end of June and it was a fabulous and amazing night. I was together again with old friends Yvonna, MJ and Mark from Warsaw and a wonderful new friend, Michelle. We started the night off at Yvonna house then moved down town. On the way there I was reminded of my life as a teen riding in a Camaro.
Oh yeah. Brian Livingston if you are reading all the memories of the brown one you had flashed back. I think it was Brown. Anyway MJ was driving the Camaro to Stone Lotus, a great club in the Chicago downtown area.

We arrive in fine VIP style, since we were guests of the owner. Now this place is hopping. People everywhere. Inside they were jammin and outside they were begging to get in. It is one the best places in Chicago. We and hundreds more were celebrating the 2nd year anniversary of the opening. The owners were getting requests for many people to reserve spots. One very famous and well respected actor wanted to rent out the entire lower level but was turned away because his cost to rent it out would not come close to the amount of money they brought in on drink and cover for the 300 or so down there. So Johnny was turned away. Which Johnny you ask? Only the famous Captain Jack Sparrow. Yes, they turned away Johnny Depp and possibly a great publicity opportunity but I don't think they need it. Many famous people go there and they were featured in US Magazine....I guess that is a big deal. But whoever didn't come too bad for them. We partied and drank like rock stars. We had drinks provided GRATIS or free for the night. Photos shot by professionals and shots around the house. It was a great night and we had the time of our lives. It was so good to spend the evening in Chicago with great friends from Warsaw. It was like partying Wawa style all over again.

Wrecked by a F3

It was June 11, 2008. Storms had been in the area for the past several hours and severe thunderstorm warnings were everywhere. But in along the small highway know to the locals as "Old 40" there were tornado warnings everywhere. My good buddy Devin Hanney, who I have known since I was 6 years old, was on the radio watching the radar when he realized the storm had shifted. The tornado spotters were out on the road looking for signs of tornado activity but were not having any luck, which is good, or is it. Devin asks Billy Hanson, one of the spotters, where is he and which direction his he going? Billy is heading west on his way to Solomon along Old 40. Dev says, "Turn around, this storm is going the other way." It is on it's way to Abilene and Chapman and to head to I-70. He tells them this storm will not cross
I-70 and to head east.As the storm continues to head east it builds and and builds. Until 10:17 or so in the evening. At this point the tornado was on the ground heading toward my small town of 1250.

All area sirens are blaring and Miretta Lucas is on everyone's TV telling them to take cover. The local police are driving the streets getting the locals inside or telling them to go the District 473 Gym to take shelter in the locker rooms. Now many people believe Chapman is protected well from tornadoes and one will not hit the town. To the South is the Smokey Hill River, on the East side is Chapman Creek and to the West is the legendary Indian Hill. This hill has been an sacred place to many locals for hundreds of years.

Miretta continues to make announcements on the local emergency channel saying it will be here in 10 minutes!!!! She was wrong. It was there in less than 5. A second siren sounds which some people thought was the all clear. Rev. Trickle and his wife came up from the basement assuming it was over but they were wrong. This is what was left. Somehow they lived while the bricks were flying and the chimney was crashing only a few feet away from them.
The tornado was.just hitting town. The first home to go belonged to Mrs. Licardi. Her home was on the edge of the Smokey Hill River, that was suppose to protect Chapman. It's gone now
and nothing was left of the house but funny enough the Blazer in the garage never moved. You can see it if you look closely.


Everyone says it sounds like a train. My Dad says everyone was right. He was sitting at the table instead of being in the basement because he thought he had more time. When the power went out and he heard the rumbling and the house beginning to shake along with the windows on the second floor being sucked out he knew it was there.
He ran to the back porch that led to the basement and barely made it in when a ladder and tree limb slammed though a locked door. Grass, dirt and glass was shattering all around him as he headed to safety. It was 10:22 when it hit and it was gone by 10:24. It moved through town going about 55 miles per hour (mph)or 100km/h. It was approximately a quarter mile wide or half kilometer for my Euro readers and was rated at a F3 with 156 mph or 200km. That's a big fast moving storm. It whipped out everything in it's path and there is nothing that is going to stop it.

Now I can go on and on with stories but nothing will show the devastation or explain what happened besides the pictures my Dad took outside his house and of the leveled homes. 60-70% of the town was damaged and about 100 homes were severely damaged or completely destroyed. I was very upset hearing the sad news about my town being hit. I arrived and it was very difficult for me to see what happened. My home as I know it is gone and will never be the same. NEVER!!!

One thing I can say is this town is filled full of amazing people. Everyone has really come together to help one another. They have come together in true Kansas form. There was lots food donated to the American Legion and meals were provided day and night for those effected by the storm. So much was happening when I was in town. People were getting back to their normal lives by heading to work and cleaning up. The schools were drilled. All 3, Elm, Middle and High are in no shape to have students. They are currently rebuilding as I type. Good Luck, Chapman!!!