I finally got around to taking my little point-and-shoot to the climbing gym and took some pictures and even a video. You'll have to check out the video on my flickr page, as I don't want to upload that twice.
As with all things done regularly over time, I'm getting better at it, though I can't really claim that I'm always satisfied. I have my good days, when I accomplish a lot (which means I learn some new technique, or make marked improvement in a technique, or else when I'm able to complete a route or problem I'd not been able to do before), and of course the bad, when I'm just too tired, or else just can't, for whatever reason, seem to complete anything. But last week Friday and Sunday were very good days for me, in terms of learning and problem solving. Just to refresh the memories of those not so familiar with climbing: bouldering is not climbing long, typically high routes, but is about solving "problems," which are short but often require power or great technique or both in order to "solve" them. So on Sunday, I was able to "solve" quite a few problems, some of them in the "middle" difficulty rating. Considering my two months experience, I'm quite happy with that progress. That said, there is still a lot of improvement I want to make.
I'm also in the process of looking for a new apartment. I think I found the one for me. It's essentially a one bedroom located about a 15-minute walk from Shin-Osaka station, which is a major station in the area (a primary stop for the bullet train as well as local trains and even subway). It has a relatively "large" living/dining room, as well as what is known as a "unit" bathroom, which is a typical American-style bathroom, which has the toilet in the same room as the shower. For most Japanese, this is undesirable (a cultural thing), but for me, I don't really care either way, although I think I increasingly like the separate toilet idea.
My agent is in the process of negotiating or finalizing details with the landlord, but I think I'll get the place...I'll have to move in about two weeks, a bit of a pain in the backside, but not too bad. The biggest problem is that my friend Naomi will be here and I'll have to neglect her for a bit while I pack and then move. On the upside, my friend Moto has a friend with a kind of delivery truck, and they're going to help me move, perhaps along with Scot, another colleague.Finally, I went to visit an old friend I met during my last tenure in Japan, a Kiwi named Heidi. (For those of you who may not know: Kiwi = New Zealander.) Heidi lived in a different town than I did, but she was such a lovely person, so kind and fun, that I always held her in high regard. She is also friends with Aaron and Lisa, my friends in Colorado, and was at their wedding, which was actually the last time we saw each other, an almost unbelievable 6 years ago. She married a Japanese man a few years back, has had two cute little kids, and they are all now living in Shizuoka (home to the famous Mount Fuji, and well known in Japan for growing tea). I went up for a quick one-night stay, mostly just to catch up and meet her husband and kids. It was really great to see her and to chat the hours away, and to see that she's doing so well. Her husband is a very nice guy, speaks English quite well although he's a bit on the quiet side. Her kids are very cute. The older, a boy of three named Tetsutaro, Tetchan for short, is quite fun and treats his sister with great generosity...I imagine my brother was the same way. The youngest is one and a half year old named Mary, who surprisingly took to me fairly quickly. It was a nice visit, very nice to reconnect with old friends. I look forward to seeing them all again, perhaps in September...
Aloha...
No comments:
Post a Comment