This morning I woke up before the alarm and looked outside. The sun had already made its way over the horizon, banishing shadows and warming the air. With March just around the corner, weather forecasts are offering plenty of reasons to focus more on the weekend than whatever might be in front of us. Today was no different, with an expected high of 15˚C by the early afternoon. I made a mental note and started the morning routine. With any luck, Ayumi and I would have the chance to visit one of her favourite parks in the neighbouring city at lunchtime.
Our morning was incredibly routine. Ayumi enjoyed a little walk around the neighbourhood, and I took a shower shortly after returning home. From there, I signed into work and started documenting some of the projects I’ve worked on, sending emails here and there as the need arose. As lunchtime edged closer, I checked the mercury outside to see whether we would go for a walk around our neighbourhood or make a trek into Kasugai to Ayumi’s favourite park. The temperature reached 15˚ just before one o’clock, sealing the decision. We would drive to Ayumi’s favourite park, and because it was warm enough for her, we’d do it with the top down—the first time in months.
Ayumi has not been in the car for weeks. When the temperatures hover around freezing, she’s not at all interested in travelling beyond our little neighbourhood. This is something I’ve often found odd because the inside of the vehicle is heated, and she’s wrapped in blankets when I see she’s cold. However, Ayumi is very consistent with her preferences. If she doesn’t like something, she will choose to do something else or argue the point. Fortunately, the weather was in our favour, as the puppy was more than happy to walk to the car and take her spot in the passenger seat.
The trip to the park was absolutely wonderful. People looked at Ayumi hanging over the passenger-side door as we passed by. The wind pushed her ears back, and her nose worked overtime to take in as much of the warm pre-spring air as she could manage. As we pulled into the parking lot, she started to make excited noises. She knew where she was, and she wanted to go explore!
These past few months have been rather boring for Ayumi. She does enjoy sniffing around the neighbourhood parks, and we do have several different routes to keep things fresh. But she’s been inside more than usual on account of the colder temperatures. The weather in this part of the country is not much different from where we used to live until last year, but the winter air will cut through jackets and sweaters very easily. Ayumi’s fur, while impressive, is far too domesticated to block everything.
As we meandered through the puppy’s favourite park, I thought about the trip to Kyūshū that I had planned for mid-March, coinciding with the end of my employment contract. Could we make the trip without spending too much money? Is it a good idea, or just a passing dream? If I plan on being mostly self-employed, taking a week or two to tour the southern prefectures seems a little risky. That time could be spent building, promoting, and communicating. However, Japan’s springtime temperatures are here for just a few short weeks before the crushing heat and humidity of summer arrives. If we don’t go in March, we may not have another opportunity until late October.
Am I just being selfish? Childish? Unrealistically optimistic? Perhaps.
But when I look at Ayumi’s smile when we’re outside, and when I remember the fun we had for those few days in Kōchi last year, I can’t help but think the time away would do us both some good. It may not be possible to visit every prefecture in Kyūshū, but we could visit one or two.
There will be ten days between the end of my employment and the earliest I can register with the unemployment office. Those ten days coincide with the very start of Cherry Blossom Season in Nagasaki Prefecture, a place with dozens of free camping grounds. If we avoid the toll highways, a weeklong trip could be had for less than $300—half of which would be for gas.
It’s tempting. Very tempting. And as I watched Ayumi soaking in the fresh air today, I couldn’t help but wonder—why not?