f-f-f-freeeeezing!

8.45am today was 6 degrees in Shinjuku. That's 11 degrees below bearable, imo.

Day two back, saw only one error on today's schedule and I caught one for Tuesday early. Joy.

Conversation with student:
Me: hello
Student: *giggle* (student is 36 years old)
Me: how are you?
Student: *giggle*
Student: I have a cold. Now maybe you will catch it from me. *giggle*
Me: I'd better not...

Student: I started cooking classes.
Me: What kind?
Student: [blank look]
Me: Japanese? Italian? cakes?
Student: bla bla bla Japanese and cakes and bread.
Me: Do you like cooking?
Student: I've never cooked.
Me: ???
Student: I live with my parents (student is 36 years old, remember?)

Same student then goes on about how how this will be a bad year for her because, according to some Japanese custom I've never heard of (and when you teach mainly one-on-one and small groups you generally get the same stories again and again and again) - in Japan everyone gets six unlucky years and for women it's ages 30, 31, 32, 34, 35 and 36 (33 is given off for good behaviour?) and men it's 20, 21, 22, 40, 41 and 42 (or something like that).

She had NO idea why it was meant to be bad luck or what you were meant to do or not do in these years - apart from going to a special shrine blessing (temple blessing maybe? can't remember!) but she believed in it.

Blind faith, anyone?

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Went out tonight. Had a couple of drinks. Have a headache now.

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It's bloody cold.