The Changing Leaves

It's getting colder and colder in Haruno. A couple of nights here have already dropped below freezing. Alisha says that this isn't even as near as cold as it will get.

"When my little space heater and electric blanket is on full blast and I'm covered in four blankets in my bed; thats when I know it's cold."

Yikes! this reminds me of Boston, except there is no central heating involved.

As a result, I have made best friends with kotatsu-san. Kotatsu-san is the living room table that we eat on. We also watch movies, use the computer, and study Japanese with our legs under him. What makes him so special is that he has a blanket that runs from the top of the legs to the floor, like a thick skirt. He also has a heater built into the frame that warms the entire space under the table. This makes him the number one friend during the late fall and winter months.

Yesterday we went to Morimachi to spend the day with Shino-san, a student and friend of Alisha's. He is a elderly-looking half-blind man who describes himself as echi. The closest English translation is probably "pervert," but the negative connotations are not as strong. Perhaps "dirty old man" is closer? From the coffee shop to the restaurant we went to afterwards; he knew all the women working there, introduced them to us as his girlfriends, and always had them laughing with some joke or another. With my limited Japanese I understood some of his jokes, and they seemed to fall into the same category as almost all of my dad's jokes, which was both scary and familiar.

After a lunch of shrimp and squid pizza, we went to Okuni-jinja, another local shrine, so that we could see the fall foliage known as koyou. The shrine and it's surroundings were beautiful, with colors as intense as any fall in New England. When Shino-san heard me tinkering with my camera as I walked the forrest corridor approaching the shrine, he lightly admonished me; telling me I should be contemplating my life as I approach. "Prayer first, picture after." I realized how disrespectful I was being, so I appologized and put the camera away. As I continued walking my mindset changed and I began my own little Thanksgiving; thinking about my mother, father, sisters, relatives and friends.

Although the forrest path from the car to the shrine was not very long, by the time we had finished our offering and prayer, it was already 4 pm. Since the sun completely sets by 5pm in the mountains, we only had an hour before it got completely dark and very cold. We quickly made our way back to the car and went to Shino-san's house for some snacks, sweets, and a bit of sumo on the TV before heading home.

As a side note: I have been in communication with a company and have been offered an interview sometime next week. Hopefully all will go well, and I'll get the job I need to stay past February. I have decided that my Japanese goal is to become pera pera, or fluent, enough to read a newspaper.

Next weekend is my birthday! I won't be enjoying my favorite indulgent birthday ritual (Sunday brunch at the Four Seasons), but a nice substitute is planned with our upcoming trip to Kyoto. Drew's sister is coming to visit, too. After we pick her up at the airport we (Drew, Julie, Alisha, myself, and our friend's Masa, Chiaki and Dan) will head to Kyoto to do some sightseeing for a couple of days. I am really excited as I've heard Kyoto is one of the most beautiful places to visit in Japan.