Days and Months

Of my time in Tokyo: the days go by so slowly, but the months fly by so quickly. Each weekday is excruciatingly slow - sitting at my desk, abiding by my facetime requirements (for the most part). And yet, my time here is flying by - we're already in the second week of March and the rest of this month is totally packed: visit from El Hombre, ski trip to Hokkaido, family trip to Kyoto & Nara, Halmuni's extended stay, followed immediately by a friend's visit. Add to that writing 2 food reviews and 4 food blog posts (and spending time coming up with content for such reviews and posts) each month. Oh yeah, and that bothersome thing called a full-time job. And of course, at least 3-4 7K to 10K runs per week to get the endorphins running through my body, which keep me sane and happy.

Keeping busy is the way to keeping happy in Tokyo, I've concluded. Any moments of idle time remind me of any of the following: the annoying traits of Japanese culture, the soullessness of the city, the fact that the Pacific Ocean stands between El Hombre and me, the inanity of my job, etc. But as long as I am constantly occupied by something, I'm adequately happy with my life here.

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I found out last night that two more friends are planning on leaving Tokyo by end of June this year. If they both end up leaving, I would officially have two remaining female friends in this city, one of which is married (and therefore only counts as 25%, because married folks tend to only have about that much spouse-free time) and the other, I'm not that close to. Must get out of here by June. Camaraderie with other expat women in Tokyo is what makes life here bearable (and just barely!).

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If I can manage to get out of here in June, and my March is filled with visitors, that really only gives me two more months in Tokyo. And out of those two months, I'll be heading home for almost two weeks. So about 6-7 weeks remaining in this mega-metropolis that I have grown to love and hate in equal measures. As I dropped off my snowboard bag with my concierge this morning so they could send it to Hokkaido in advance (one of Japan's greatest inventions is the takuhaibin system, where you can send your luggage to your destination directly, door-to-door, so you only need to show up at the train station or airport with the clothes on your back - the service is so affordable that there's no reason not to do it), I had the fleeting thought that as much as certain things about Tokyo drive me nuts (chauvinistic, men-first society; "it is impossible" mentality; extreme conformity), I am going to miss the everyday conveniences that I take for granted living here.