Is it supposed to do that?

Update:
I'm not sure when this is actually going to be dated for.  I wrote this in August 2019 right before heading to Reno for Burning Man.  I was going to finish it up and post before heading out to the Playa, but that obviously didn't happen.  ::chuckle::  But figured better late than never!

*********************************************************************************************************

So I did a thing today.  And going to hopefully finish it tomorrow.  Sounds ominous, right?  ::chuckle::  No, nothing so drastic as whatever it is you're thinking.  I changed the color of my hair!  This is something I've been wanting to do since I left Japan.
     Sidenote: Japanese companies can be very strict about what is considered
     "appropriate/natural hair colors".  And men, don't feel left out!  You guys have to be
     clean shaven!  ::grin::
I tried an all-in-one while I was on Maui with less than stellar results.  All it really did was lighten my hair after whatever was in there actually washed out.  ::pout::

So my cousin Leslie was nice enough to agree to help me on this adventure.  Neither of us have bleached hair before (I've had friends do it on two separate occasions, but my job was just to sit still) so it didn't go exactly as planned, but I LOVE the results!!  One of my little second-cousins also wanted to be assistant and fetched us hair clips and made a hand washing station for the paint on our arms (from a prior task).

Now here are some lessons learned:
1) The lady at Sally Beauty Supply (who was super helpful by the way) may tell you to take no more than 10 minutes to finish applying all the bleach, but that just isn't realistic...even with short hair.
2) Don't let your bleach dry on your hair or else it won't pull the pigment.
3) Step 2 can also be prevented by not doing out in the sun (I got the heat/no heat rule mixed up with the hair dye step) and keeping the head covered.
4) Measure your developer in the little bowl BEFORE putting in the powder so you actually know how much you put in there.
5) Olive Oil conditioner does aMAzing things to your hair after destroying it with bleach and a toner.

It's happening!!!         

So needless to say my hair didn't come out as expected (there was head shaving tossed around as a last resort if needed), but it was actually really cool.  When I got back to my friend's place, she said it looked like an ombre and was much cooler than if I'd done the whole head as originally planned.  YEY!!!

           Before

    During

                                                                                                                             After

Sidestory: My little cousins apparently got inspired with wanting to brighten up their hair and the eldest got into her hair chalk.  She told her mom there was purple in it just like Cousin Kira (It was blue).  And this morning, I got an update that the youngest didn't want to be left out with the hair colors.  Love you guys!!!

Me and my amazing (and brave!) cousin

Part 2
Today I did the final step of coloring my hair.  I went with Arctic Fox Purple Rain as it looked like it'd have the pop I was looking for (and one of the two companies I remember hearing about from my gals in college when they did crazy colors).  Plus side is that it's apparently vegan friendly.  Bad side is that it apparently fades fairly quickly.

So this time I applied it the old fashioned way and just squished chunks of it into my hair.  I tried the combing method for a hot sec and then just got annoyed.  ::chuckle::  Let it sit for about 45 minutes, had it covered in a compost bag because I couldn't find a plastic bag, and did the blow drying thing for a bit (it said it could help on the bottle ::shrug::).  Washing it out, I got.....not purple.  More of a maroonish/dark red mixture.  I was a little bummed, but hey!  Gotta roll with it.

I also realized I missed a giant chunk on the back of my head so after a couple of hours doing other things, decided to go one more round.  Reused the same bag (you're welcome Mother Nature) and did more blow drying.  This time it came out a closer shade of purple.  I'll take it!!!  For my first full bleach to color attempt without experienced peeps, I'd say it turned out pretty awesome!  ::grin::  And worst case, there's always the razor.

**Please Note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**

Not for re-use without prior consent and approval

Day After Valentine's Day

So I'm not sure if I did a good thing or a bad thing.  My wallet and little voice of thriftiness say "Good on ya!" ::fist pump::  While my 30's-year-old metabolism is going "Gurrrrl, what the heck were you thinking?!  You aren't a teenager anymore!!  But you're still gonna get acne!!"

So to clarify, I'm back in the States and this is my first time being here for the day after Valentine's day clearance sale of chocolate and deliciousness.  I "might" have gone overboard, but oh my goodness was it worth it!

And look how much I saved!!  ::justifies it all in my head::

The lady at the register also said I shouldn't hold myself back.  The best prices around!!  ::laughing::  So I told her I'd be back tomorrow and see if there's anything still left over.  My reasoning being that I'm having self control today, but whatever's there tomorrow is fair game.  It was meant to be.  She thought that was good thinking.  We've got a date since she's working tomorrow as well.  ::grin::  

I'll let you all know how it goes...

**Please Note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**

Not for re-use without prior consent and approval

But WHY??!!

Alright Mother Nature, we need to talk.  I appreciate you wanting me to feel welcomed back to Wisconsin, but this really wasn't necessary.  No, really.  This is one thing I seriously didn't miss.  And you went all out, didn't you?  Two snow falls in 3 days.  And it's only the end of October.  ::sigh::

  Welcome back!!

Tuesday's snowfall

Thursday's snowfall

Oh, and

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

**Please Note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**

Not for re-use without prior consent and approval

Mainland bound

Sitting in another airport, getting ready to board for my next adventure.  I've spent the last 3 months in Hawaii (about 10 days on Oahu and just over 2 months on Maui).  On Oahu, I saw family I haven't seen in nearly 15 years, learning more about where I come from.  On Maui, I did a work-exchange (check out workaway.org) with a family mostly involving house and animal sitting as well a separate Respite gig with a lovely nonagenarian.

It's been good to relax, just slow down my daily life.  I explored, but also found times where just reading a book or relaxing on a beach was considered a good day.  There's still a lot for me to see.  Who knows?  Maybe I'll be back!  ::chuckle::

My next destination is Seattle.  Lucky me, I arrive on my little cousin's birthday.  Shhh!  I've got a gorgeous mu'umu'u for her.  ::fingers crossed:: that she likes it.  Seattle is a pit stop before heading to Reno for....Burning Man!!!  Super excited to be back on the Playa for the whole burn.  Last year was overwhelming for a lot of different reasons and add on that I arrived late and left early...a bit hard to fully relax into the space.

Lots of people are asking when I'll make it out to them.  Wish I had an answer but just taking it a few weeks at a time.  I've got it planned as far as my next stop after Reno, but that's it thus far.  And all this flying isn't cheap!!  ::crying::  Finally getting my online teaching sorted so that should help give me some stability as well as flexibility.

Just wanted to give a quick update.  Love to everyone and see many of you soon!!!!!  Lovelovelovelovelove!!!!

Sunset on Maui

**Please Note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**

Not for re-use without prior consent and approval

New Glasses!!

Long time, no post...I know!  But hopefully you've been checking out my vlog on Youtube.  ::fingers crossed::

Today I'm going to share a video I posted a week or so ago with some new glasses I purchased from zennioptical.com.  Side note: No, I'm not getting paid to advertise this company.  Heck, they have no idea I made the video and this post.  ::chuckle::  I just really like this site!!

Anywho, I've been purchasing from them since about 2013 and fricken LOVE their frames (and their prices!  ::grin::)  I found out about them through a friend (Cecelia, was it you?) and have never gone back.  It was really helpful when I lived in the States because as my health insurance typically covered only contacts OR glasses, this let me still have both.  And went I traveled abroad, I also discovered they ship internationally!  Even to small islands in Thailand!!  Whoot whoot!

Here's a video of me receiving my most recent pairs of glasses.  My last ones finally had enough.  I'd had them for over 4 years and they'd put up with a lot so....well done.  ::applauding::  I went with one familiar pair, but decided to try something different with my second pair.  Funny story, I've ordered the same two pairs of glasses with varying designs every time purely by accident.  Apparently I just really like them!

And here are some random photos of my past pairs including the goggles I talked about in the video.  You can even seen the lens inserts.  I cropped photos as I didn't get prior permission to post of some of my friends/family. 

You can't see the side, but they have the same swirly design as my green ones.
Photo courtesy of Shawn Fe

               

In my video, I showed how my most recent pair was picked because it has swirls.  This is one of the symbols for my camp Habitat for Insanity.  I also got an inscription that has our placement this year.  Here's the thing though, our placement has changed.....to 4:30 B plaza.  Sooooo, I guess I'll have to see if I can turn that "F" into a "B".  ::laugh::  Wish me luck!!

Showing my campmates my new glasses (right after I'd found out our placement had changed).

**Please Note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**

Not for re-use without prior consent and approval

Don't forget to check out my Youtube channel and vlog at Monkeywithabackpack! 
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLAD533613901BA720

And here's the link to Zenni if you're interested!
https://www.zennioptical.com/

A Nod to Easter

So apparently it is Easter Sunday today.  I say "apparently" because if it wasn't for social media (and my father calling me the evening before to wish me a happy Easter), I would have continued this day as regularly scheduled.  Now that it has been duly noted, I feel the desire to make a nod to the day by sharing a video I took a while back.  It wasn't on Easter, but I guess you could say it has Easter-tones of the "Peeps" variety.  I'll let you all make the final call.  ::chuckle:: 

Enjoy!!

As always, please feel free to explore my other writings on this blog as well as my vlog on YouTube which can be reached HERE!  I will be posting more videos soon so keep an eye out!

A time of anniversaries

You know that feature on Facebook that shows you memories of posts and events that happened in past years on this day?  I sometimes get a kick out of seeing what was going on, especially from college when Facebook was so different then.  Heck, I was so different!

Today had some sweet reminders.  A friend's wedding pictures, a message written in the sand, and a creepy recipe just in time for Halloween.  One post however, was unexpected.  A reminder that 7 years ago, my world was rocked and the results set me firmly on a path that led me to where I am today.  

Just over 7 years ago, I was working a steady job I could picture staying with for the rest of my life.  I was looking at buying a house and finding permanency in a town I adored.  Then I got sick.  I don't even know if sick is the right word.  That makes me think of viruses and antibodies and take enough medicine so you'll be better.  This was nothing like that.  This was a waiting game and the unanswerable question of "Why?"

With it came a shift in priorities.  A feeling of restlessness.  A realization that you can be a healthy 24 year old who can still have a brush with mortality.  That life is too short to put off dreams you'd do "someday."  And so I stopped looking at houses.  Eventually I started looking at jobs that would allow me to travel.  And one day I sat down with a friend who asked me what my ultimate dream would be to do with my life.  Who then called me out on my excuses for why I wasn't pursuing that dream.  

Just over 4 years ago, I fulfilled that dream.  I left the US with just a backpack (okay, maybe a big backpack and smaller one) and started to travel the world.  I've lived in 5 different countries, become a certified PADI Dive Master, learned to ride a scooter, discovered that oreos are a universal treat, hugged a koala, been to visit the States twice, and so many other memories and events too numerous to count.

But traveling isn't just about the crazy stories and epic adventures.  There are the lessons learned.  About other countries, other people, other beliefs, other things outside of my own little bubble.  Expanding that bubble and in the process learning more about myself.  The power of silence.  Learning to be in the moment with my body, mind, and spirit.  Finding the balance of planning and going with the flow.  Realizing that my overall well-being is more important than a paycheck.  That always on the go is fun, but some constancy also has its place.  Having the ability to say yes and the choice to say no is a freedom like no other...And the lessons continue (and re-teach if I didn't learn it the first time).  ::grin::

So as I write from the comfort of my trailer in Kanagawa and get ready for bed to prepare for a new week of teaching English at my Japanese international kindergarten, I can't help but feel awe for how an event 7 years ago changed my life in more ways than I could have imagined.  As Corrie Ten Boom's sister said, "Thank you for the fleas."

Obon and an announcement

I'm going to keep this short and sweet or else it will become another item on my To-Do list.

I'm sorry for the quality of the audio.  I'm not sure if it made that scratchy sounds because of my a/c running, my computer running out of memory, or having the volume up high.  Hopefully you can still enjoy it.

I LOVE YOU ALL!!!!

So many pictures!!!

I have hundreds if not a few thousand photos and videos over my 3.5+ years of traveling.  A mix of ones I've taken and others I've received from friends or been tagged by mutual friends.  My old computer was great for storing them (a chromebook) because I could put them on Google Drive and access them anywhere.

But then my computer started to die.  My Drive started to reach capacity.  Aww, crap!!  What am I gonna do now?  The old answer used to be burning data on discs, but not only does that become cumbersome to carry around, I don't even have a disc reader let alone a disc burner.  And so I have resorted to USB drives (which I have always called "jump drives".  Why?  No clue.)  Some Daiso shop tags later and I've got backed up photos and even slightly organized ones at that!

Now ideally all the drives would stay in the nifty little fox bag...

Of course now instead of a bunch of cds I now have a bunch of USB drives, but it gives me some semblance of order especially after I started dating them.  Although to be fair, the first one is called "Everything before Japan".  Even then it's still relatively easy to find pictures as I organized them first by country and then by city. 

I'm sometimes terrified I'll lose a drive or my camera will magically delete a bunch of photos.  A legitimate concern as my old camera did it once during my first trip abroad.  I paid the ultimate price for an amazing photo of the Sistene Chapel.  I try to balance this fear by not taking many photos.  I find I remember a place or event better if I have fewer photos.  Sometimes I just take 1-2 pictures to represent something that happened...and then write about it.  We don't make photo albums like we used to so even after taking a bunch of photos, sometimes they are never seen again anyway.

One solution to preserving memories would be to print copies of the pictures.  That way if I ever lost the drive, the file became corrupted, or the drive broke, I'd still have a paper copy.  But that would mean carrying around tons of paper or mailing them back to my parents and having them sit in a box for an indeterminate amount of time.  Instead I find other ways to preserve memories such as writing in my journal, making a post, or keeping a memento I then put in my journal (and hopefully make some sort of note about).

This little journal is bursting at the seams!

An idea of what some of my journaling as morphed into

It's an imperfect system as sometimes my self-discipline is lacking, but Hey!  It's a work in progress!  And this post came about because I was bored and wanted to see some old pictures of my first time petting a kangaroo.  So I will also leave you with this.....

You know...chilling at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary with a kangaroo

**Please Note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**

Not for re-use without prior consent and approval

Tis Time!

Hi everyone!  Yes, I'm still alive.  I haven't been kidnapped, arrested, or become a hermit (mostly).  I had to take a step back from social media for a couple of different reasons and while I've recently been itching to do another video on my vlog, technology has had other plans.  Youtube shut down their video editor and my two sources to the internet AKA my computer and phone are both dying.  ::sigh::  As many of you know, I have a very strong hate-hate relationship with technology so I haven't been particularly keen to jump back into the shopping pool to replace them.

That being said, I also need to acknowledge the human side of my withdrawal.  I remember when I first started regularly posting again and one thing I discussed was how to balance a 9-5 job after having traveled for so long.  Stressing the importance of keeping the good habits I had developed and not falling back into familiar, non-constructive cycles.  I'll admit, I backslid a bit there.  There have been some periods of difficulty in adjusting here in Japan.  This country is different than any other place I've been to and while that's not innately a negative, it can be stressful.  Luckily I have made some wonderful friends who have been able to offer support and advice as I navigate living and working in Japan.

So what the heck have I been up to these last however many months?!

Well, I am now the proud owner of a 5-person tent.  Gotta love those second-hand shops!  I've gone out camping several times with friends to places like Izu, Hakone, and Nikko.  I know you may just shake your head when I say there is video coming for those trips but I really do have pictures and videos to share!!  Look, here's a picture as proof!!  ::chuckle::

our view from our tent at Nikko

I am still hula dancing with my school I discovered.  And yes, there will be another video although I can't share the actual dances due to privacy for the choreography.  But here's a GIF to entertain you...

My school is keeping me busy.  It's hard to believe we're halfway through the school year and only 6 months left with my class.  Time goes by so quickly!  We're gearing up for Halloween and can you guess what my classroom theme is?  HINT: My costume involves a love of cookies!

And of course I have been discovering new and amazing things here in Japan.  Karaoke is of course a crowd favorite.  I've also discovered dessert cafes which I don't even have words to describe at the moment.  Trust me, you want to know more.  I'm also learning how to make yummy Japanese food!

And I shall now leave you with a picture of my attempt at being a ladybug.  Because who wouldn't want to see that?  ::laugh::

If you'd like to check out my vlog on Youtube, you can check it out here.

Monkey with a Backpack VLOG

**Please note: all photos and video are property of Kira Zebroski**

That Time I Wore a Surgical Mask in Japan

Hello everyone!

I know it's been a while since I've posted on my blog.  I'm actually making an effort to try and get more posts up both on my blog and my vlog on Youtube.  I put up a video last week, but as it seemed to say everything, I didn't see the need to write a post about it as well.

You can check out that video about my new direction HERE.

This week's post is about my first experience wearing a surgical mask in Japan.  I had come down with the flu but needed to go out in public.  I didn't want to get kicked off the train, so my solution was to wear a mask and keep my germs to myself.  Yes, I know...sharing is caring.  But there are just some gifts people don't want to receive.

You can check out my experience with masks HERE.

Some displays of masks and "accessories".  

You'll notice they're basically all white.  I've seen some black ones, but very rarely.  The patterned ones were all for little kids.  ::pouting::  I would totally rock Hello Kitty or smiley face masks!!

I also found the solution to my glasses problem!!  These little foam pieces were at a 100 yen shop.  You put them in the top of your mask and somehow it's supposed to keep your glasses from fogging up...or "anti glasses dim" as it's apparently called.

 I also noticed towards the end of the day my mask took on a slightly funky smell.  Maybe I was smelling my own breath?  In which case I need to invest in more tic tacs.  Or I just spray my mask with chemicals and inhale those instead.

And thus ends my first foray into surgical masks in Japan.  I know I have a lot to learn and maybe down the line there will be an update on the culture of masks.  I hope you enjoyed it!

**Please note: All photos are property of Kira Zebroski**