Back in Canada

So I'm back in Canada. A brief recap:

My students threw a party for our last day. It was a great time because, in very typical Japanese fashion, everyone who had previously been very formal to me throughout the term was suddenly my best friend and confessing how much fun the class was, and how they thought I was the greatest teacher ever, etc. etc. I don't mention this to be egotistical, but just how it seems to be a standard thing that happens: all these students who you thought d or were bored by your class suddenly start gushing about what a great time they had and how much they're going to miss you. Funny that they only let you know this stuff as you're leaving.

The other funny things that happened were that my students ambushed me, grabbed me, and threw me up into the air a dozen times or so. That was terrifying... but fun. At the end, somebody was fumbling with their camera to take a picture, and so all the guys were standing there trying to hold me up, yelling stuff like, "Hurry up! He's heavy!"

Also, everybody wanted to take a picture with me. And I mean everybody. 60+ people, and every single one of them has a cellphone with a camera in it. So that's (give or take) 120 photos or so. Insane. My face hurt from mugging for the camera.

Anyway, after the party I had a few frantic days of last-minute business to attend to, packing, cleaning up my apartment, saying good-bye, and everything else you can imagine. Well, you'll have to be content imagining it, because I really can't remember any of it.

After that, it was off to the airport and my 12 hour flight. It was actually not so bad. They kept our minds off of our sore behinds by feeding us constantly, and I met a nice Japanese woman on the plane. She didn't really speak English but I was able to carry on a rudimentary conversation in Japanese, which impressed her to no end. I guess in Tokyo, many foreigners get away with speaking no Japanese, which gives them the impression that none of us can speak it. So when they meet somebody who can string together a rough sentence, they are flabbergasted.

When I finally got to Toronto, I was in for a rude shock because the temperature was pretty brisk... This after it had been hot enough that I was sweating while cleaning my apartment the day before in Tokyo. It has only gotten brisker over the last few days. Last night, the mercury was down around -30, and with the windchill, they said it was -41 or something. Today, it's still freezing, but it should end by tomorrow. Good thing, too, because Japan has made me weak! I take back what I said about Japan being colder (in terms of comfort) than Canada. Clearly I spoke too soon.

Less than a week to go til Christmas... does that mean it's time to start buying presents? Why am I such a damn fool? Why do I procrastinate so badly all the time? And why do I ask so many rhetorical questions? Who knows? Who cares?

Merry Christmas, everybody.