May 20, 2011

Relocated. Revitalized. Really.

Yikes, it’s been more than a few weeks since my last missive and our vantage point is now vastly different. We’re living in a new city now—Yokohama, just south of Tokyo. Apropos to my new home, I experienced two earthquake tremors today; my co-workers laughed when I looked a bit skittish as the building swayed. Apparently, “you get used to it.”

We moved here at the end of April and the action hasn’t stopped since then. Finishing the last few days of my previous job, contemplating the 5,414 days I spent living in Hiroshima, and then being catapulted into the maelstrom of setting up a new homestead in a new city— I felt like a youthful Emilio Estevez circa Repo Man: just forward motion without much thought of future consequences. Amid all the harried moving-in activity, Jerry Garcia’s apparition appeared beside the foldaway lawn chairs in our 10 ft. x 10 ft. front lawn, and welcomed us to the new neighborhood. Who would’ve thunk it?

Part of the move from Hiroshima to Yokohama entailed the retirement of our old TV, a huge old box which took a duo of movers to haul out, and cost me about $75 in recycling fees. It was replaced by a new 32-inch flat screen which gives me headaches and already sports telltale infant thumbprints. But the upside was that this consumer binge has been beneficial to the kids’ morale. In their eyes, I went from a modest Average Performing Father to the Greatest Dad Who Has Ever Lived. Super-sized cartoons now rule the roost in our happy, significantly larger, home.

Kickass²
I am not certain of the etymology of the venerable term “kickass.” But I do claim copyright for kickass², because the Rising Family is now engaged in our very own version of the Apollo program in terms of a new lifestyle. I assure you, dear Reader, we are kicking ass-squared in our new city, new home, and new job.

M1
Marina turned one year old recently. She’s adorable and developing new skills, new balance, and a new appetite for learning every day. We just adore her and wished her a wonderful first birthday, and a lifetime of equally happy years to follow. I’m gushing, but I’m allowed: I’m a dad.

She also took her first steps on April 21.
And so it goes.

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