Friday, July 18, 2008

The Summer That I Know Of

The heat and humidity is becoming unbearable. Somehow the time of the year where I complain about the s-words: stickiness, stinkiness, sleepiness, sluggish, sloth...

It is becoming hotter on sunny days, and even when the sun is blocked by the clouds, it is humid and muggy. I end up like a beached whale on my bed or on the couch in shorts and a little more than my undergarments. I started cooking and eating spicy food with the girls, sweating away as the chili burns while gulping down cold lemonade. I can describe "cold/cooling" foods vividly. I want ice-cream.

I have also been out on walks. O-sanpo! It carries the same connotation as when I was in Japan. N and I will walk and sit for a while. We have 2 spots, and my favorite is the hidden hill over looking the water "factory." It is cool there. I watch the water churn in the night and stars hanging brightly above us.

Just now, the familiar sounds of the cicada are heard. I smile. I finished watching "Honey and Clover" a few minutes ago and thought of all the summers I have spent in Japan. The heat, the mugginess, my complaints... The smell of cigarettes as I sit down with my boys. The familiar sight of greens at Yoyogi-park. The excitement of cooking for one another as we just hung out and talked our days away. Our escapades to affordable restaurants and the mall to chill indoors with the air-conditioning.

Many thoughts plagued my mind. The atmosphere is making me sluggish. I reminisce the summers I had in Japan. I miss those days. I miss the company. And yet, I am thankful that in this new place, I have new friends, new challenges, and finally, I am doing what I have been thinking of since my first summer in Japan.

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