a history of me

Is luck purely a reflection of our mood? Is a "lucky" person just feeling better all around so they appreciate their blessings while the "unlucky" person is really just dwelling on the negatives life has to offer? I'm forced to wonder about this because lately it seems like my "luck" has improved so much I can only imagine it's directly related to me feeling so happy all the time.

For example, last night I went out to see Scott. It was pouring rain most of the evening and windy to boot so even with umbrellas we were getting wet. Sure, we still had fun and we talked about some really urgent personal matters but by the end of the evening I was quite moist and worried that the bad weather would carry over into today and spoil the outing Mako and I had planned. Instead, the sky was clear and the temperature was nice and brisk. Pretty "lucky," no?



Our first stop of the day was Byôdôin (平等院) in Uji (宇治). The centerpiece of the temple is the building pictured above built approximately 1000 years ago. That's right, a millennium has passed and it's still standing. The more I think about it the harder it is to really comprehend that. Sadly, I wasn't allowed to take any pictures of the awesome Buddha image inside the hall which was quite large and magnificent looking despite the wear and tear one thousand years has wrought.


Ack, too close to my face for comfort I think.


The Uji River was pretty choppy. A stiff breeze even ripped our map right from Mako's hands!

Byôdôin is probably the most famous sight to see in Uji but there was quite a lot of other places to check out in the area. Nothing was very large but we took our time strolling around town, popping in and out of little temples and shrines along the way. Most of them were improbably old although without much English guidance I couldn't say how old. We saw Kôsyôji (興聖寺) and Ujigami jinja (宇治上神社) en route to a museum dedicated to the The Tale of Genji. Mako was particularly excited to see that because she read that story back in high school. I've never read it but I remember my friends and I always took notice of it whenever we saw it in a bookstore - it's goddamn huge.


Kôsyôji Temple. If it was really full-blown autumn this photo would be a lot prettier.


Why a giant fish? I have no idea. We just turned a corner and there it was. Mako was stunned!


Ujigami Shrine

We were surprised at how quickly we were able to walk around and see everything Uji had to offer (more or less) so we ended up going into Kyôto for a while and then having dinner at a garlic restaurant. I know, I was surprised too. It's kind of a misnomer though because it's not like we just sat around ripping into cloves of fresh garlic and breathing fire; every dish just had a little garlic in it. Wisely, they offer free gum when you pay the bill.


I'm pretty sure this was somewhere inside Yasaka Shrine.

In an unoriginal but ultimately rewarding move I brought Mako back to the river where we got pretty physical last month. There was time for that, to be sure, but it was here that I decided I should tell her that I love her. Her reaction was low-key which I expected: in talking to Scott it seems 「大好き」is the normal Japanese equivalent of "I love you" even though they have a separate word specifically for love (愛) which you've probably seen on T-shirts or in tattoo parlors before. So I've already been (more or less) telling her I love her for three weeks now. D'oh! So much for my heavy-handed contemplation! Still, I felt better having told her and I like that she now feels comfortable responding in turn.

I still can't believe this is real. Is it "luck" or just happiness after a long drought? How did I manage to meet someone so sweet and attractive and with a decent command of English in such a short period of time? When you factor in the unlikelihood of her being single and falling for me as quickly as I fell for her the odds start to get highly improbable. Whatever the dynamics, Mako and I are getting closer with each date and with my birthday just around the corner things are looking to get even closer very soon. Can things truly get better or is the Sword of Damocles on the way?