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

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!!!!

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**

Dipping a toe back in

Hello everyone,
It's been a while since I've been online like this and I'm still not sure how much further down the rabbit hole I want to go.  The week of my birthday was a rough one both personally and for my country.  I basically shutdown my connection online.  I needed to focus on the present moment.  Limit my interactions in the social media world.  There are moments when I feel like I live my life through a cyberworld rather than the real world and I needed to disconnect.

I'm slowly re-emerging, feeling like I can take some of my excess energy and put it into outside activities which feel productive.  I'm still not ready for Facebook.  I've only been on a handful of times over the last month and a half and usually only for a few minutes.  Instead, I'm putting together some video blogs AKA vlogs (although this word always makes me tilt my head.  It's a weird word!) at the suggestion of my friend.  We'll see how they go.  I'm of course going to continue writing regular blogs; there's just going to be another facet to my sharing.

And now for something completely different!

Life has been busy for me.  I finished up my year visa in Australia and am now traveling around Japan.  It's cold but with my years in New York and Wisconsin, I guess I can't really complain.  ::chuckle::  I'm about 3 weeks in and it's been absolutely incredible.  Add on the fact I have a traveling buddy (my first in any of my travels) and it truly is a new adventure.  We've spent a week in Tokyo, splurged for a few days in Hakone, couchsurfed in Nagoya, and now we're meandering through the Kyoto/Nara/Osaka area.

I'm going to keep this short in sharing about all I've experienced thus far, but you can get a taste with two short videos I made while staying in Tokyo.  The first is the Chichibu Night Festival which happens in the mountains north of Tokyo.  Each neighborhood in Chichibu has a float which they push and pull by hand to the shrine at the center of the city.  There is also a huge fireworks display at the end.  You can read more about the festival HERE!

The second is from the light display in Tokyo Midtown.  Winter illuminations are big in Japan and we've been working our way through many of them as we travel.  You can read more about the different popular displays HERE!  There are so many different types of illuminations and some of the smaller cities have lantern displays made by students and local artists.  I have more video coming so keep an eye out.  Until then...

LOVELOVELOVELOVELOVE!!!! from this Monkey with a backpack.

Chichibu Night Festival

Lightshow at Tokyo Midtown

Voting From Abroad

My ballot has arrived!  My ballot has arrived!!  It is with mixed feelings that I found my absentee ballot waiting for me when I came home today.  This presidential election has been different to say the least and being abroad for the duration of it has given me an interesting perspective.  I’m disconnected from the usual influx of political ads I remember from past elections.  Most of my information comes from foreign correspondents and the trickle of facebook posts from friends back in the States (which often prompts me to do more research on what is actually going on).

I’ve tried a few times to write a post about my thoughts on the election: when Bernie and Clinton were running for the party’s nomination, being torn on where to cast my vote once it became apparent Bernie was out of the running, when Clinton became the Democratic Presidential nominee, and now with seeing the election process come to a head as Clinton and Trump debate over the national budget, social/economic equality, and the suitability of their temperaments to becoming President of the United States.  I could never seem to find the right words to express how I was feeling.  Especially after reading so many posts and articles of others who spouted their opinions so loudly it became more of a shouting match than a debate, I didn’t want to be just another decibel of sound.

As a single female traveler, one of the most oft asked questions I received was some form of “You’re traveling by yourself?”  Now when people find out I’m from the States, they instead ask me what I think about Trump.  I’m not going to get into my opinion of him and if you’re interested, message me and we can have a conversation about the ‘suitability’ of Donald Trump as president.  Watching the media about the US presidential election from Malaysia and then Australia, I saw the outside perspective of how our election process was viewed.  To be honest, it hasn’t been that favorable.  It’s turned into a reality show for politics and taken just as seriously.  That’s not a compliment for our country.

I knew I was going to vote in this election come hell or high water.  I just wasn’t sure how.  Luckily I met up with my friend Todd while in Sydney and he’s an active member of Democrats Abroad.  He directed me to Vote From Abroad, a site which helps those living abroad to register and vote in US elections.  This was especially important as I’d changed states from New York to Wisconsin when leaving and hadn’t been able to register before I’d left.  They gave details for each state on requirements to register and request an absentee ballot as well as deadlines for the election.

Photo Property of Kira Zebroski

My own personal experience with an absentee ballot has proven to be a bit frustrating; however, I think it’s finally been sorted so I’ll be able to vote.  ::knock on wood::  I’d sent my request for registration and an absentee ballot but had a moment of difficulty when trying to figure out how to prove I reside in Wisconsin since the best way to prove that is with mail.  Luckily my mom and I figured out I could send a printed copy of my bank statement.  Even though it’s an e-statement, it still has my address printed on it.  Then a few weeks ago I was contacted by the Town Hall of my residence to call them as they needed photo ID from me.  Photocopy of my passport?  Sorted!  

I’ve now received my ballot, been researching the candidates in my State and local election, and almost lost it all in the 11th hour.  Wisconsin needs a “Certification of Witness” which is the signature and address of another US Citizen to prove I am who I say I am and the voting procedure has gone as planned.  SERIOUSLY????!!!!  I’ve been traveling to some remote areas with only a couple hundred residents and they want me to find another American to sign my ballot envelope after I’ve sent them my photo ID, bank statement, and social security number??  In the two years I’ve been traveling, I’ve met less than a dozen other US citizens.  It’s one of the reasons people thought I was so crazy when I said I was going to start traveling.  It just isn’t typically done in the US.  So if I’d still been on TI or the Gili Islands or potentially even Koh Phangan, I would have been shit outta luck.  That is an incredibly frustrating feeling.  To work so hard to get to utilize my right to vote, only to have some unnecessary, redundant, and potentially impossible hoop to jump through be what stops me from voting??  That is completely unacceptable.  Wisconsin, you already disappointed me when I read about how difficult you’re making people who physically live there get a photo ID so they can vote.  This just brought my opinion of your voting process down even lower.  You can and should do better.  There is enough complaint about the lack of voter participation in the United States without needing to make it impossible for those who DO want to vote.  Luckily, I think this particular story will have a happy ending.  My Sydney friend has connected me with the Melbourne group of Democrats Abroad and one of them should be able to sign my envelope.  YEY!!  Crisis averted!!

During my time in Australia, I’ve also gotten to learn more about their election process.  Voting is mandatory.  It always happens on a Saturday and voting booths are at public facilities (typically a school or town hall).  One of my friends told me that school groups would run sausage sizzles (similar to a brat fry in Wisconsin) and people would chat online on who had the best sizzle.  I really liked this as it brought more positive attention to schools as well as promoting a sense of community.  Election campaigns are short.  There was apparently complaining over the most recent election which lasted 2 months as opposed to the typical 4 weeks.  Imagine...only 4 weeks of campaign trails, debates, and political ads.  Now it isn’t all bliss.  They don’t elect their prime minister, but rather vote for their political party and the leader of the majority party at the time becomes prime minister.  They’ve had 4 prime ministers in the last five years.  So consistency and success of long-term planning can be difficult.  If you ever watch Australian politics, the two main parties are Labor and The Liberals (who ironically are conservative) with the Greens getting about 10% of the vote.  And there’s also been a rise of minor parties, sometimes with rather interesting names.  Pirates Party?  Australian Sex Party?  Political party….or theme for the next great get together?  ::chuckle::

So as I prepare to exercise my right to vote in the 2016 Presidential Election, I urge my fellow US citizens to do the same.  Don’t just write about the changes you want to see on social media, share articles, or talk.  DO SOMETHING!  VOTE!!!

And if that isn’t incentive enough, it’s also my birthday that day.  Give me a really good birthday present America.  Please.

Links to Articles and Groups:

Vote From Abroad

Democrats Abroad

Wisconsin Systematically Failing to Provide the Photo IDs Needed to Vote

2 year anniversary

Hi everyone!!  I know this has taken a while for me to get out.  And here I thought it would be easier and faster since I made a video.  I guess I should take into consideration bad internet connection next time.  ::chuckle::  Oh well!

Here it is!  A rather long video of me putting some thoughts out there about the last 2 years of traveling and an update (sort of) on where I'm headed next.  In true Monkey fashion, I ramble a bit but I figured it makes the video all the more endearing....maybe.  ENJOY!!

I also have a small compliation of some videos I've done while traveling if you're interested.  I have many I still need to put up but it's been put in the "to-do" list like so many other things.  

Youtube vlog

Thank you again for everyone's continued support and love.  It really helps keep me going in times when I wonder what the hell I was thinking leaving everything behind.  ::laugh::  Lovelovelovelovelove!!!!!