2002-01-04 - 10:06 a.m.
I’m back in Japan from America, and the whole trip seemed to go by in the blink of an eye. I had a great week home, spending time with my family and getting to know my 4-month old niece; then I headed up to New York and caught up with a lot of my friends. As predicted, I was not particularly culture-shocked, aside from being a bit dazed by my sudden literacy in the shampoo aisle at the supermarket. Also Americans have a way of demanding exactly what they want even at the expense of politeness toward a fellow human being, and this kind of forceful behavior is something one does not come across very often in Japan. And of course there were the post-September 11 differences -- the Israeli-inspired airport security (those machine guns are supposed to make me feel *safe*?); the cranes rising up from the NYC skyline; a wall of missing posters in Grand Central Station; commemorative WTC snow globes alongside the Statue of Liberty mugs; and of course, all those American flags.
Back in Japan again, everything seems to be right where I left it. Saori surprised me at the airport, which was not only touching but a blessing, because I’m not sure how I would have made it back to my apartment with all my luggage otherwise. I found myself recoiling from Japanese TV, as I did in my first couple of weeks here last summer -- it’ll take a while for me to get used to its freneticism again. So instead, we ordered a pizza and watched my new Sex and the City videos. I’m dreading going back to work on Monday, but my new goal is to use all my free time more productively. So if anybody has any ideas as to how I can productively fill 3-6 hours a day sitting at a desk in the middle of a staff room with no Internet access and co-workers constantly checking to see what I am doing, please let me know.
