a life in the day of ian (sic), part ii: my new mansion

Back by popular demand (not really), I share with you "my today".

7:00 wake up, shower and put away my futon (so the spiders can't get to it)

8:00 have breakfast (the last melon bread... tomorrow it will be sweet bean-filled bread) and catch the subway

9:00 to the bank branch in Roppongi (the famed entertainment district) to figure out what is happening with a foreign check I had deposited. it turns out that foreign checks take one month to clear and for that service the bank takes a few percent cut off the top (but they gave me some free tissues... ) bureaucracy!!!

10:00 a few more stops on the subway to my immigration lawyer's office where I picked up passport with my new visa in it!

11:00 to the landlord's office with my realtor to sign the paperwork for my new "mansion"! Yes, I am moving.

I now hold the key! (to my new flat)

12:00 go to the new flat and get the grand tour (including how to properly dispose of rubbish within the City of Tokyo guidelines... read: "lecture")

13:00 met my partner for a quick celebration lunch at a restaurant near MY NEW MANSION!

15:00 after dropping by home for a quick change, went to work for a couple of hours

19:00 here I am, typing at the computer and thinking about curtains, fridges, etc and looking at the key to MY NEW MANSION!

It has been a long, eventful week.

And it will be an even longer weekend; for the 5th year in a row, I will be the "leader" at a wedding event that my friend's event company produces. The event: five couples get married on the longest suspension bridge in Japan. My job: put on a tux and sunglasses and lead the couples across the bridge, which sways in the wind above a canyon.

All in a day's work.