A Quick Drink

I had just spent the day in Tokyo. I was really tired and a little depressed. I had just had an argument with a friend of mine, one of the only at the time, and I had to go home. Home was Odawara which is a little bit of a ways from Tokyo- if you take the local train it is a good two hours away. I was too tired for that.

"Bullet train it is," I thought. I got on the Kodama express from Tokyo bound for Kyoto, all stops between, destination Odawara. Still feeling pissed and cranky I had bought three long cans (500ml) for the ride home. I love this country for the easy and socially acceptable access to beer at all hours of the day. Keep your judgements to yourself.

As I sat and rode home, the scenery whipped by, and I felt better. By the time we left Shin Yokohama I had just finished my third [that's a 20 minute ride!-ed]. I felt much better but still a little bugged. Just then a middle-aged guy sat next to me. The girl with the snack/drink cart came into the car and started her sales pitch. The guy next to me pulls her over and orders ro-ppon. "Was that six cans of beer he just ordered?" I thought. She put six tall ones on his table. "Fuck, he's gotta be tough," I thought. Then he puts three on my table and says, "My daughter is in Canada now. She went there to study English. I hope she's OK. I can speak English only a little. Where are you from?"

"I'm from Canada." I croaked in surprise. "Thank you for the beer, but my stop is coming up, Odawara." I said sheepishly.

"Well, I hope you are a fast drinker," he said, "Kampai" I managed to get down two and a half as we chatted about life. Turns out he's a salary guy from Shizuoka who commutes every day to Tokyo and back by bullet train. He has a lovely house out there that he couldn't afford if it was in Tokyo. When I got off of the train I was hooped. But this small experience, just meeting a decent guy on the train, clanging our beer cans together (and probably getting progressively noisier as we did) had been such a pleasant time that I practically flew home on my love for humanity. I have no idea who that guy was,but it just proves that wherever you are in the world, whatever language you speak, you can make an impression by trading a smile and listening and having a time together. Cheers buddy, wherever you are. Hope your daughter passes all the TOEFL/TOEIC/EIKEN/STEP tests out there,gets a job, hires me, and we meet and raise a can of brew again.