Autumn!

Yes, it has finally gotten cooler outside, and noticeably so! This morning the breeze was actually refreshing, and it's brought a noticeable change in my mood, as well. Living through this summer has been not unlike carrying a cross, I'm willing to admit, and the weight is falling away, now.

Today was my manager's birthday, so after work we sang happy birthday and presented her with a cake, took pictures of us with the card and the cake, and then proceeded to eat said cake. It was really good, and I could eat most of it, because it was a crust with cream filling and a fruit topping! Then, I went to Starbucks (which is located four floors beneath me on the ground level of the building I work in) and met with up with a former student and her friend who had lived in Toronto for a year. We passed an enjoyable hour drinking hot chocolate, talking about Japanese life, getting to know each other, and making tentative plans to go to a festival in mid-October.

For most of this summer, I've felt like a shut-in on weekdays, since I hardly know anyone who lives or works near me, and my work schedule makes it impossible to make dinner plans at a reasonable hour or to hang out for very long without having to catch the last subway train home. I'm hoping this fall I can start making a little map in my head, and getting myself out more often. My social calendar is slowly but surely filling up for the end of this month and the beginning of the next, and I think that might be the key to me enjoying my time here more. My life can't be all about work, but that's what it's mostly been for the summer, despite my attempts otherwise.

However, now that it's nicer out, I may just be venturing outside a lot more - using my bike, of course! There's still so much to explore in my neighbourhood, not to mention the rest of Japan.