"I'm leaving~ on a jet plane~"

And I really DON'T know when I'll be back again :P

So yes...I'm giving into my family's concerns (as well as some mild ones of my own) and getting out while the getting's good. I really don't want to wind up trapped in Tokyo should The Worst happen, and since my family are very worried and would just rather I be with them right now, I'm going to do the wise thing and retreat for a little bit. I'm hoping it won't be long, but a week and a half should be a good little respite as well as a chance for the situation here to either settle down and let me return or escalate so that I can make hard decisions *sigh*

This really, really sucks--for everyone up north, worse so--but having less than 24 hours to leave the country? Ugh. This is not the vacation home I wanted :(

I'll be on the first train out to Shinjuku station in the morning, because none of the trains to Narita are running and none of the buses are taking reservations for tomorrow since they don't know what the situation will be (they told me to get there as early as possible). Worse comes to worse, I've got money for a very expensive taxi ride :< I'd much rather be waiting a long time AT Narita than worrying about whether or not I can even GET to Narita.

On the bright side...I get to spend my birthday surrounded by my family for the first time in several years?? *tries to make best of situation*

I'm not even checking any bags, just grabbing what I can and stuffing it into a carry-on and gtfo-ing. This is the worst :(

Post-quake Day whatever, still depressed :|

Waiting around at Narita Airport for my flight to leave. I'm still feeling really conflicted about the whole thing and not looking forward to a 12+ hour flight back to the states...but there's nothing that can be done about it now :|

I've never had to leave Japan despite not wanting to, so I've never realized how really frustrating it is and how angry it makes me that I have to choose between staying in the city that's my home and potentially my own safety. I suspect it would be a little easier to stomach if I were absolutely sure this was for my safety, that staying would be infinitely more dangerous than going home. And geez, it's only for 10 days! (well, right now) It's not like I'm even missing anything big (I'll be missing Romeo and Juliet next weekend...but it was starting to look like it was just going to be boys in drag and I didn't want to really see that anyways :<)

(there are little children next to me who are obviously halves because they look foreign as anything with blond hair and blue eyes but they are speaking fluent Japanese and I HATE THEM SO. *jealously seethes*)

Anyways, yes... I just really hate this whole thing. I miss my family, but I miss Japan even more right now--and I'm not even on the plane yet :< I definitely am not ready to go back, I'm realizing... And while it's good that my family won't have to worry anymore about me during this crisis, I just...really wish I didn't have to go ;____;

*siiiiiiiiiigh*

Of Edanon and Yamada-san

Also, on a lighter note, the niconico video chat that streams alongside the NHK webstream running now is about the most adorable thing to watch, despite the fearmongerers on there as well. Edano (Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary, this dude) has become kind of the 'mascot', adopted by chatters and twitterers alike, because he's EVERYWHERE and seems to never sleep (you may have even seen the article on #edano_nero ["Edano, sleep already!"]). Last night, someone posted this pic last night and it made me laugh XD Also, he has been fondly dubbed "Edanon" which makes him sound like a magical girl to me XD

Similarly, but not on nearly as large a scale, there was one reporter for NHK, Yamada-san, who was on-location somewhere I've forgotten and was giving a report. Unfortunately, nearby, a helicopter was landing and making it almost impossible for the poor guy to be heard, even after being asked to hold the mic closer. Ultimately, the anchor said they'd come back to him later (after the chopper left), and instantly the chat exploded with comments of concern like, "Yamada-san! Ganbare~!" and "Yamada-san, makenaide!!", and a few moments later, when the shot cut back to him, the chopper was gone, and the chat erupted with excited comments like, "YAMADA-SAN GA HERI NI KATTA!!" ("Yamada-san beat the helicopter!") and "Yamada-san good job!!" XD; Oh Yamada-san, your antics and katsu-ing against a heri made my day a bit brighter :)

In other news, there was just another really strong quake right beneath us--a 6.0 @____@ Please let Chiba not fall into the ocean before I leave...!