I have a heart-warming story that also happens to be a body-warming story as well!
It sounds like you people in Nebraska and similar longitudinal places are having a cold fall season. Snow! I bet you are very “samui”! (“hotsui” means hot and “samui” means____) ; ) Even though we’ve not had snow here, it feels pretty stinking cold. And there are two primary reasons: #1-I didn’t pack any warm clothes (we intended to ship them instead…but it turns out that s&h to Japan is a bit more pricey than expected!) and I haven’t purchased many yet. It’s a work in progress as things that fit well are a titch bit difficult to find here. And #2-heating is a luxury here. A semi-necessary luxury, yes, but a luxury still. And no one leaves a heater running when they’re not in the room, as this is wasteful (aren’t Japanese people smart?!). But in conclusion, no need to feel any sympathy for me: I was fully equipped to face the bitter winter and now I am even more so…on with the main thread of the story.
In Japan, people change winter clothes on October first. There’s actually a sort of nation-wide closet swap. Henceforth, if you wear short sleeves on October second, people will ask you wherever you go, “Aren’t you cold?” Maybe you are and maybe you aren’t, but if you wear short sleeves, you should be prepared to receive this question a lot!
Before I went shopping here for winter clothes, I did wear quite a few short sleeves. Therefore I answered the question above A LOT! And I usually told them, “My clothes were being shipped from America. I don’t have any warm clothes now, but I’m going to go shopping soon.” I thought this was an honest, straight-forward answer but…
A few days ago, my friend at the local Board of Education Office called me at school and said that my supervisor at the Board of Education had a kutatsu blanket for me. (A kutatsu is essentially a table that you can plug into the wall. Then you sit with your legs under and enjoy the wonderful warmth. Colin left me one to enjoy, but I needed a blanket yet. She asked me when he could deliver the kutatsu blanket and I said later that day would be fine. I met my supervisor at my apartment, but when I opened the door I found not one man with one blanket, I found two men up to their chins in blankets! They were absolutely laden with huge bulky packages! And then they asked if I knew how to work my air conditioner/heater and before leaving they gave it a thorough inspection. Neither men speak very much English (and I speak way less Japanese!) so I’m not sure exactly who the blankets were from or where they came from or even whether they’re for my futon (bed) or for the kutatsu or both…
But oh my goodness! This just seems like such a Japanese/incredibly kind and generous thing to do!! I suspect that I told so many people (a few of which work in the Board of Education office or at school) that I didn’t have winter clothes that it eventually got round to my supervisor and he bought a massive amount of blankets and sheets to ensure that this silly American wouldn’t turn into an ice cube. I took a picture of all of the blankets and as soon as I can put the picture up, I will. I think you’ll agree that the sight is quite incredible!
So now my heart is warm and my body is too. : )
