the maa-maa phase

Well, on Saturday we had a summer party. It was very fun. Everyone wore yukata , like summer kimonos -- including me! It's like parading around in a bathrobe with an incredibly elaborate, fancy sash. I bought the biggest size they had, Double L. And it was still a little too short for me. But it was easily forgiven because I there is no gaijin size here.

Anyways, the party was great. It was a little confessional and more than one person revealed their feelings of love. (Quote of the day: "I love you but let's never talk about it again.") As for me, my Japanese has finally improved enough that I can have very small conversations. YAYYYYYYY!!!!!! About time! I was very surprised, because recently I've hit the second plateau and find that I can understand a lot of what's going on. I am no longer saying "Watashi wa heta desu". 'Heta' means unskilled, which is what I've been saying for the past 5 months. I'm now in my 'maa-maa' phase. My 'so-so' phase.

I went home when the sun came up and had to take off my wooden sandals. They are fun to wear but today it feels as if I got a nasty sunburn on the webbing between my biggest toes. Walking home, I felt the roughness of the pavement under my feet and remembered how tough my feet were when I was a young pup in Africa. It was as if I had leather soles.

Really it was one of the most fun nights I've had here. Long live the Summer!