[Tsuwabuki]

This is something most long term residents like Nyororin will understand, but perhaps might be something to consider for most of our regulars, few of which live in Japan, and fewer of which have lived in Japan for a number of years. Despite "Cool Japan" and the truly amazing amount of anime and manga available these days, many people have severe culture shock when they come to Japan, especially if they move to more rural or bedroom community Japan instead of Tokyo. I've had coworkers that couldn't adjust and left after less than a year in Japan.

I am not one of those people. Quite the opposite. Despite keeping my location as Fukuchiyama here on the boards, I actually have been spending large amounts of time in Texas earning my MA. I stay with my parents during these times, in the room I essentially grew up in, but I feel more like a temporary boarder, and not like I am in my own "home."

I got back to Texas yesterday (I had been posting from Fukuchiyama and Tokyo) after renewing my Japanese drivers license and paying my city taxes, and I went straight to class from the airport. The experience has been... surreal. I found the things I miss most about Japan when I am away are the small things. The way roads are paved, the way gutters are set up, the smell of wood and rice paper, the constant ding ding and clackity clack of trains. The corner shrines I never visit but always have a reassuring presence. Now, back in Texas I am discomfited by the lack of these things, and that is the strongest possible affirmation that this is not home. The atmosphere itself seems wrong.

I only have eight months until I'm done with my MA and I don't need to spend large swaths of time in Texas, and as proud of Texas I am in a historical and cultural sense, I'm going to be glad when I go back to only coming to Texas on one or two week vacations during holidays...