Well, that was it. My last class of the year. Now I'm on the home stretch. Literally. Since its 11:18 am and I'm already done with the work I had to do today, I have 5 hours of keeping myself "looking busy" before the bell rings and I'm really out of here. My plans: use the computer until I'm booted off by a teacher scurrying to finish grades, then finish addressing my New Year's postcards to Japanese friends, then maybe try studying some Japanese without my dictionary which has already been shipped inside my luggage to Narita. I'm going to help a student practice her English to prep. for an interview to a exclusive English program in a private high school for awhile, then I need to go to the post office to send some mail (I have to send some money through the P.O and they only do that 'till 3-- its really convenient for those of us who work). I'll then have another hour to kill (and will probably be going nutty by then).

Once I leave, I will run home, take out the trash, change clothes and grab my backpack. Then I'll walk to the station (because I can't leave my bike or car there in the snow for two weeks and I can't rationalize taking a cab for the 1.5 mile walk), catch the 5:18 train to Matsumoto, then the 6:20 bus to Shinjuku (Tokyo), then several trains to Tom's apartment (now you're hopefully catching why I mailed my luggage to the airport). I plan to watch a movie tonight (Tom's in Europe, so I'll still be all by my lonesome), take a bath, and go to bed (hmmm... sounds like last night). In the morning, I'm going to finish up some Christmas shopping in Shinjuku, then hop a couple of trains and then the airport train out to Narita. Then, after I track down my luggage, I'll be on the way to Indiana via Chicago!! Yay!!! With everyone else (in Nagano, it feels like) totally out of here.. it has been a very long, quiet week of waiting. I've finished all the tedious interviewing and had a couple of Christmas lessons which have improved my mood. My house is clean, my laundry is washed, I've sorted what needed to be sorted, and mailed every form that has come across my desk. I've had Bing Crosby's Christmas music on as much as possible and I think that's one of the reasons I haven't lost my mind (that and all of the Christmas cookies my friends dumped at my house before flying out of the country).

Anyway. I'm out of here. Next post from the U. S. of A!!!