The Persistence of Summer

AM

Least: At 8:55am, I woke an hour later than usual. The hour disappeared simply because I had forgotten to set my alarm back to the usual 8:00am. Sleep creep is a real danger while working strange hours in Japan. Some people sleep later and later until and 11:00am alarm seems harsh. If I'm not careful, my AM period may just evaporate altogether - then there really will be nothing to write about.

Most: At 11:20am, I careered up the street on the Impression on a lunch mission. When I wasn't thinking about how flat the tyres were becoming, I was considering the surprising strength of the sun as it pounded the back of my neck with UV rays. Despite a cool day yesterday, the whiff of a too-hot summer manages to persist. I'm hoping that this week is the last gasp of heat and that the chilly northerlies begin sooner rather than later. Again I am reminded today that the distance between the least interesting and most interesting is becoming very thin indeed.

PM

Least: Just after 9:00pm, my train pulled into Mikunigaoka station. On the platform was an old man in a Nankai uniform chipping solidified chewing gum from the ground. I have actually seen him on numerous other occasions with his scraper and atomiser of citrus solvent. Since I first noticed him, I think he had managed to clear about ten metres. I am sure that by the time he gets to the end of the platform, he will have to begin again from the other end. People often comment about how clean Japan is, however it is probably only so because poor old men like the one at Mikunigaoka have to clean it.

Most: Between 8:00pm and 8:40pm I spoke with a teacher from an agricultural high school in Sakai. Given the relentless urban sprawl, I was amazed to discover that the school has a full set of farm animals including cows, sheep and pigs and fields of grain and vegetable crops. I am still wondering where on earth they could have built such a facility in such a dense city. Maybe good earth might uncover the location.

Notes from the Bottom Drawer

AM

Least: At about 9:50am after another restles sleep. Waking in baking heat comes less that an hour of turning off the airconditioner. This cycle continues ad nauseam until the sun rises at some incredibly early hour. Luckily, complaining about the humid horrors of summer is a sport for Osakans.

Most: At about 10:50am, still reeling from the pizza from last night, I poured a digestion-related sachet of Rosie's medicine into my gullet. Although it looked and tasted like chalk, the Biofermin-R turned out to be a storm of 'good' bacteria. I was unable to find out whether there is any medical benefit of danger from the preparation. Fingers crossed.

PM

Least: Today, the Kansai Time Out told us to go into town and visit the Minatomachi River Place Flea Market. Luckily it was free to enter, because the market was also free of anything of interest. Instead, there were several mats partially filled with worn-out, bottom-of-the-drawer clothes, some boring jewellery and some wooden giraffes. Rosie cut a lonely figure as she climbed the baking steps to escape at about 1:50pm.

Most: Close to 2:10pm, we stumbled across a new Junkudo close to Namba Hatch. The shop was massive, and had generous English section and an even more generous discount English section. Luckily the books that I needed were all 70% off. I bought DBC Pierre's Vernon God Little, Dostoyevsky's Notes from Underground, Conrad's Nostromo and a couple of gifts for a couple of babies. I got a bonus cheesecake for my custom - Rosie got four.


FOODNOTE

Lowlight: Chilled udon and curry at a restraunt in Namba City. Menu choice, menu choice, menu choice.