Friday February 1, 9:36 a.m.
Yup, definitely back to a normal Winter day here. As I type this, it's about -10 C outside, compared to the heady heights of +14 C on Wednesday.
I was watching NHK News today and the sports report mostly centered on Japanese baseball training camps in Okinawa which started yesterday. Looks like everyone's happy there....perhaps the Okinawan government should even declare the opening of training a regional statutory holiday. All of the fans were there with their cameras, cellphone-type or otherwise. The one guy who seemed to be getting the focus was a strapping young lad by the name of Otani...all of 18 and although perhaps not as tall as the beanpole Yu Darvish, he still has quite the physical presence. And ambition....he has said he wants to reach the Major Leagues someday. If he's that good, he can now probably get there within a decade.
The whole spectacle reminds me of just a couple of weeks ago when the NHL strike was over, and hockey fans descended on the Leafs truncated training. And the Leafs won at home over the struggling Caps last night...and it was a come-from-behind win, too. So, it seems that the big key here is consistency and making sure that there are no more injuries on the team.
For the first time in a few weeks, I've got no translation issues to worry about. I handed in the first of the annual translations to Cozy last night and am waiting for any further comments from the regular boss. Initial reviews have been good; the editor hasn't lost that much hair this time.
Well, I'll be heading downtown for the first time this year. Will be meeting Sam for lunch. May actually pick up some Chicken Parmagiana sandwiches over at The Carousel Bakery at St. Lawrence Market later on for the parents.
