Things that could have gone much worse today.

So, today wasn't the greatest day, but truth be told it could have been a LOT worse. Yesterday we went to this gigantic AEON in Dainichi - AEON is basically a huge mall; we spent way more time there than I think any of us intended, but there was like hundreds of stores and restaurants. We had lunch at a "family buffet" which was really quite good and neat because of the breadth of choices available; some Western food, some Italian, lots of Japanese stuff and a plethora of deserts. Very interesting.

Anyway, so we spent hours there. I got lunch, won a coinpurse out of a game machine, bought some new earrings and a hairband. I found a bottle of Skyy vodka for 980 Yen, whereas in the US it'd be about 2,200 Yen. It's weird that liquor is so much cheaper here than in the U.S., and beer so much more expensive. I bought some grapefruit juice at the grocery store (for obvious reasons) and then had just enough cash for the train ride home. Once we got back, I literally had 18 yen to my name, at least in cash. I figured I'd go to the ATM machine the next day, before class. I woke up early and headed to the nearby Peacock, where there is a JP Bank and an ATM machine. It was 7:50 when I got there. Unfortunately, in Japan, ATM machines have hours. This one didn't open until 9. I was at an impasse, of sorts. I didn't have enough money to take the train to school, and there was nowhere else nearby where I could get ahold of cash, quickly. Convenience stores have ATM machines with more convenient hours (yet still not 24/7 for some reason), but the closest one was a good 30-40 minute walk away. I was exasperated.

There is a Risona bank in the same area, and it said their ATMs opened at 8am. So, I waited 10 minutes, hoping that either my RBFCU Mastercard OR my JP Bank card would work in their ATMs. Neither did. So now it was 8am, my class started at 8:50am, and I had no way to get to campus. Walking would take over an hour, probably, and I don't have a bicycle. I was clearly in trouble. Dejected, I returned to my dorms, unsure of what to do. As a last ditch effort, I crept up to Minji's door. I could hear the TV on between the door, so I knocked. Quickly and with an air of despair, I explained my situation. Could I perhaps borrow 500 Yen for the train? I knew once I got on campus, I could use one of the ATM machines there to access my cash, after 9pm. Minji's face crinkled into an answer that I knew could only be "no." She told me she didn't have 500 yen. . .

But she did have 1,000 yen she could loan me. Would that work?

Absolutely.

I was so relieved and immediately rushed to the train station. I made it to class about 5 minutes before it began, so I was glad not to be late. So, while I might not have made it to school at all, and while I might have been late, neither of those things happened. Score one for me.

The morning weather had been spectacular; blue skies with sunshine and a nice cool breeze. I had the briefest thought that it MIGHT rain, but immediately dismissed it because the skies were so clear. During my final class of the day, however, the sky began to darken. Clouds moved in from the mountains and threatened to bring a mighty downpour. Now, rain is no big deal, to be sure, but it's miserable sloshing about in it and then being drenched afterwards. I didn't have my umbrella and frankly, even if I had, I still end up being soaked even with the stupid thing. So, I was concerned that the rain would start before I made it back to the dorms. I still had to buy some groceries, as I was entirely out of food. I headed away from campus and had almost made it to the station when I reached for my mp3 player and realized my headphones were missing.

Exasperated, I searched every pocket, nook and cranny for them. They were gone. I was very upset at this point. I have Skullcandy headphones with a built-in mic (for Skype) and I REALLY like them, and they were fairly expensive. I mentally retraced my steps and realized I'd left them in the drawer of my desk in my first period class. But that was HOURS ago. It was now past 5pm and that class had ended at 10:20. Furthermore, the classroom itself was on the opposite side of campus, and I had just walked half of campus to get to the bus station. Frustrated, I made my way back to the classroom. I found my desk and miraculously, my headphones were still inside. Me: 3, Today: 0.

I headed home, relieved that everything was in tact. As I walked through the station, it began to sprinkle lightly. But I still needed groceries, so I went into the grocery store, pretty sure it'd be pouring by the time I was done. I bought some food and odds-and-ends, and came out of the store with nary a drop in sight. I picked up a cupcake from a baked goods shop for Minji, to thank her for loaning me money earlier in the day. I made it all the way to my dorms without getting a drop of rain on me. Hooray!

So, today, I could have not made it to campus at all, could have ended up late, could have lost my headphones, could have been drenched in rain, and none of those things happened. Granted, it was a moderately stressful day, but in the end everything worked out. I've repaid Minji in both cash and baked goods, and now it's time to crash and burn, and get some rest in before tomorrow. This weekend we are planning Karaoke on Friday, and on Thursday my dorm people are going to watch Chicago (one of my favorite films) in the lounge. Hooray!