My Pledges: Evaluated
Well, if you remember, I had made some pledges about my time here in Japan. With my departure just days away, I suppose it is time to evaluate myself.
I will grow my hair.
I haven’t so much as cut a strand. The result is, well, when I wear a baseball cap I have ugly curls that fight my ears for supremacy, but, alas, my hair certainly doesn’t grow fast enough for me to have even entertained the thought of any of the hairstyles popular here among young men. That is probably for the best.
I will sing karaoke with Japanese girls.
I sang karaoke alright. I sang karaoke like no other American has ever sang karaoke. It was, as I suggested in the blog devoted to the subject, one of the best hours I have had my entire time here in Japan.
I will bathe in an onsen.
Done. You can read that blog, too. I spent an entire afternoon soaking in the hot springs that are an active part of traditional Japanese life.
I will not eat any fast food.
Completed. I haven’t so much as set foot in any of the American fast food chains that pepper Tokyo, and, even when traveling outside of Japan’s capital, I didn’t eat at any of Japan’s fast food restaurants after I made this pledge.
I will not get a cellular phone.
This was easy. This has always fit my independent stature. While I missed out on some American events and Japanese friends, I was happier to avoid another link to needless technology.
I will get A’s in all of my academic classes.
Well, I don’t get my grades until late December, but I’m feeling confident.
I will travel domestically as far from Tokyo as I can.
Well, I got out of Tokyo eight times in my four months. I suppose that isn’t anything to gloat about, but, with only weekends to travel and even those reduced by school work and costs, I am not terribly ashamed. I got as far south as Kyoto and as far north as Nikko National Park, neither of which are extremes even on this mainland Japanese island of Honshu. I didn’t make it to any of the three other main islands of this country, but, I suppose I haven’t failed too miserably.
I will travel somewhere else in Asia.
Sadly, you’ll miss it, but, yes I will be stopping off to the People’s Republic on my way home.
Okay, well, I guess I didn’t pass my pledges with absolute perfection, but, as a man who prides himself on pursuing and meeting the goals he sets, I feel satisfied that I, if only marginally, did just that. Feel free to make comment and berate me on my sloppy justifications of failure.
Jaa ne,
Christopher
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