August 28, 2004

Boke, Boke but Feeling OK in Japan

The day I shot this photo of my daughter, three days ago, I figured I was finally adjusted back to Japan. We slept in that morning, and when I woke up my head felt more clear. One nice thing about returning from the USA is that you wake up by 5am for the first few days and feel great. Each time I come back, it seems like I take up running, which lasts for about two weeks. Tomorrow will be my third day.

But other than early morning bursts of energy, it felt like I was swimming through my days. Unpacking and reorganizing to fit in the stuff we brought back. Never going outside. Enduring the muggy heat of August.

On the second day I drove the van to go shopping. I took a left turn on the way and it didn't feel right at all. I thought for a moment, then quickly switched over to the left lane feeling very embarrassed. A few evenings later I made the same left turn. As I rounded the corner, I thought, "I can't believe it! Of all the luck, here is another guy -- probably the only other guy in Japan -- driving on the wrong side of the road; and he's coming straight toward me!" That thought lasted for about a quarter second, and then I very quickly switched lanes.

My problem is that I AM a perfectionist, but I am so far from perfect.

The good news is that the hot, muggy heat stopped suddenly after a week back, and it's been wonderfully cool since -- with a light, cool rain these past two days, the kind I love to be outside walking in. Actually, I was running in it.

One Japanese friend is out of the country, but I had coffee with another friend and we spoke in Japanese. I lost quite a few words this summer, but basically it's still there.

I'm refreshed and ready for new challenges. Then again, I don't know how clear my head gets even at best. Tonight I cooked a pot of rice and forgot to put in the water... My wife was pretty upset. She still has that tendency from childhood to revere rice. You know, eat each grain out of respect for the farmers. Maybe you don't know. But later she laughed so hard that she cried. So we're good. Jya mata!

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Posted by jw at August 28, 2004 09:57 PM
Comments

That's funny about the rice. One time I remembered the water but forgot to flip the switch on the rice cooker to boil and left it on warm. Needless to say it didn't turn out well. She flipped out too because wasting rice is a huge deal here.

Posted by: Joel at August 28, 2004 11:33 PM

Deja Vu,

I saw your post over at lost in transit as well...

Posted by: Blinger at August 29, 2004 08:37 AM

Hello. I just wanted to say that I really enjoy your site and your insights. Thanks for running this blog for those of us who don't get the opportunity to visit any time in the near future. All the best to you and your family!

Posted by: Heifetz at August 29, 2004 04:06 PM

Don't feel bad about the driving in the wrong lane. I drove for one year in japan and never did that and now today I took my drivers test (you know the new law) and did pretty good until the end were I non-chalantly turned into the right lane. It embarassing to make a mistake like that. I understand about being a perfectionist...I am the same and also far from perfect. Sometimes I am too hard on myself and will dwell on a small mistake for too long.
Rice with no water hunh?? I'll have to be careful for that one. I have been properly trained to eat each grain of rice out of my bowl by my wife/rice eating instructor!

Posted by: peter at September 3, 2004 03:53 PM