This morning, I had my American Studies class with my Japanese Friend. She is about my dad's age, and she is one of the most enthusiastic students I know. After class, we like to walk through the arboretum and she tells me about the plants she has in her garden. We walked by the apricot tree, she told me about all the jams she makes from her fruit trees in her Tokyo garden. I am learning a lot from my Japanese friend, and her friendship and conversation are making this class much more engaging for me. It is one thing to have an American classmate to discuss American culture with; it is another thing entirely to have conversations about American culture with a Japanese student, especially of another generation. I took this class mostly because it came highly recommended by a teaching assistant (Hi, M!) and because the book list is awesome, but I am so grateful to have met my Japanese friend. I guess we end up where we're supposed to be and when.

Now I am home from class, and I heated up some lasagna made by the mother of a couple kids I babysit and then had half a mini-cheesecake for dessert. Boyfriend brought the cheesecake home from work last night, and it made my day. He is such a keeper. Then, I had this super-yummy idea and had blackberries with a tiny dollop of mascarpone on top. I like to spoil myself a little rotten.
I have oodles of reading to get done, so I am off to the rest of my day.

I'll leave you with a photo of BuddyHolly and Santa Claus: