A Noble Trip to Japan
Well, last night (this morning) was rather insane. Aaron was going crazy because of having work that he had to do that he didn't want to. He seemed to only be able to focus on his watercolor experiments. Becky and I were talking a bit, and then we returned to the room, and found Aaron, shirtless, sitting at his desk in front of his watercolors, with paint all over his chest and face. Later, he was talking to Nathan in the same mood. Now you see, Nathan's girlfriend, Yoshiko, is having a hard time getting back from Japan, because of some form that she has to get mailed to her. So, Nathan was missing her a lot, and he told Aaron that he should go to Japan and bring her back.
Aaron's response?
"Okay."
So he began packing things up, grabbing some food, and was about to leave. I felt that it would be better to just make sure he took enough that he wouldn't get into trouble, so I made him grab a few other things before leaving. I asked him when I should start worrying that he wasn't back, and he told me he'd call me sometime today.
So he left.
At that point, I wasn't sure when he'd be back. I wasn't sure whether his mood would remain with him for only a couple hours, or even a day or two. So, I knew that at the earliest, he'd be back in two hours, and at the latest within the week. I wondered whether he might be hitchhiking his way to Everett, where Nathan and Soren would put him up for the night and feed him, if he managed to show up. So, I expected Aaron to either come back or to call that day.
I wasn't disappointed. At about 9 or 10, he staggers back in while I'm in the shower, and falls into bed. When I get back, I say, "Oh, so you didn't make it to Japan." Nope. But he told me a bit about his journey, which sounded rather fun. Later we talked about biking to Everett someday, and figured out how long the route would be, and how much elevation gain there would be.
To top it off, I was talking to Sarah, and I told her that Aaron had called me today from Everett, saying that he was trying to figure out how to get to Japan. I said he might have to go up to the Bering Strait, but I hoped he'd try to get passage on a boat somehow. Sarah was quite impressed and amazed that Aaron was that crazy until I told her that, actually, he had been back at 9. Alas.
Aaron wrote a description of his trip, which is quite a joy to read. You ought to try it out.
( A trip )