leavin' on a jet plane...

In a just few short hours we'll board the big bird and hop across the big pond to...Detroit.

Okay, okay, and THEN we'll hop on the really big bird and hop over the really big pond to arrive 14+ hours later at Kansai International Airport in Osaka, Japan. JAPAN. FINALLY. Years and years of dreams of going to Japan and now here we are. Soooooo freakin' excited. Heck, I'm not even the slightest bit worried about being served a raw eel for dinner. (Okay, that's not entirely true, but my my friend HK says all I have to do is push gross things around my plate and smile politely. She knows these kind of things, so that's my plan. Wish me luck. And if that doesn't work, I'll politely fling the squid over to D's plate. He'll eat anything. Notice how I keep switching up the gross seafood possibilities? Wow, I'm in for it.)

Anyway, I'm looking forward to so many things, but I have to say our permit to the Moss Temple is burning the proverbial hole in my pocket. I mean, 120 varieties of moss maintained by monks?!? Can you say nirvana on earth?!? We had to write the monk (a.k.a. 'Moss Boss') at the Moss Temple a month or so ago and ask for permission to come see it. He wrote back and included our entrance permit with an appointment time...and a specific instruction to be ON TIME. *gulp* I think this Moss Boss is on to me already...

So, I guess by now everyone is on to our fascination with moss. Love the stuff. Love it. D and I routinely steal moss from all over for transplant in our yard. (We're trying to create the next moss temple. Shhhhh. Don't tell.) With that background, imagine this conversation that occurred last week:

D: [at his laptop at the desk behind the couch] You know the Moss Temple has 120 varieties of moss? Man, that's a lot of moss.

J: [laying on the couch reading yet another Japan guidebook] Yeah, I know. I'm soooooo freakin' excited. I mean, I love the stuff.

D: Ummmm...I know you always take some moss wherever we see it, but you do know that you can't steal moss from a sacred temple, right?

And he's totally serious. Okay, now that's just crazy. Apparently my husband thinks there are no limits to my moss-stealing ways. I mean, duh, who steals moss from a monk at a temple?! CRAZY.

But then I got to thinking that the Moss Temple should have a gift shop where they sell little plugs of moss for transplant to random yards in the Midwest United States with all proceeds going for temple upkeep. Maybe I'll suggest it.

So our adventure begins! We're hoping to update the blog every day if our in-room internet connection cooperates.