Scribbler's Cafe

These days, all my best friends are kids

I accompanied a group of my students to Kobe yesterday to see an exhibit of Robert Capa's color photographs. (He was a hugely famous war photographer.) My students have been learning English for two and a half years now. I was hugely proud and delighted that even outside the classroom they wanted to and COULD chat with me. I hung with eight of my students for half they day and can honestly say it was a lot of fun. They are incredible sweethearts.

Of course, it was Saturday, and I should not have been working, I should have been playing with Kiomye. So, to steal back some time, Kiomye and I got all fashion-y and rode the trains into the Shinsaibashi/America-mura area of Osaka for a late dinner and some crazy kid watching. I love going out after dark in the summer. The cool warm is perfect and the air is so comfortable compared to the day. We ate at the Movie Star Cafe and then sat in the little park where the punks and fashionista gather to be seen and play with their keitais. Kiomye talked to me non-stop. She is so funny! She had all kinds of things to say about her friends at school, about the girl with the purple hair next to us, about why we all need peace in our hearts (which is her favorite cause these days). She is charming company.

We got home around ten, which is really late considering Kiomye usually goes to sleep at 8:30, but Kiomye begged me to take a little "night-walk" to the temple stairs where all the stray kitties hide. So, we grabbed some shredded cheese to offer as snacks for the cats and headed on over. The top of these stone stairs is a peaceful and unexpected place in the middle of our busy concrete neighborhood. The stairs are incredibly long, and lift you up onto a leafy platform. When we turn and sit at the top, we have a wonderful view of the lights of Nishinomiya and the passing Shinkansen. As soon as we sat down, no less than eight dark shapes came rushing out to us. Those cats gobbled down the cheese in nothing flat, then sat around us purring and grooming while we all enjoyed the night and the lights.

posted by Scribbler @ Sunday, June 11, 2006