Thursday, December 22, 2005

hoosier know-how

I spent the night last night at a friend’s house in southern Kyoto and we woke up to find that snow had snuck into the city during the night and was still happily fa fa falling. I turned on the news to see that it wasn’t only Kyoto that was struck with this good weather, but in fact, all of Japan was being blanketed with anywhere from three inches to three feet of powdery goodness.

Of course, Japanese motorists and commuters were not as thrilled as I was. Japanese people are notoriously overcautious and afraid. Therefore, an inch of snow on the ground made it impossible for them to drive, and caused trains to be late. All of the taxis and trucks had their snow chains on. My first two lessons of the day called to cancel. I, on the other hand, rode my bicycle home on uncleared streets and sidewalks with absolutely no problem. It must be the Hoosier in me.

No comments: