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Sunday, August 9, 2009

Guerilla rain

Tokyo in summer has a similar feel to it as Florida; it's hot and humid with dark storm clouds that periodically collect above your head to dump their contents on your sandwich. (Yes, I felt it was aimed).

One such downpour found me mercifully on a bus with a friend as we set off in search of dinner. I indicated the dripping scene outside the window. "Ame," I helpfully provided. Rain.

"Yes," my friend agreed. "We call this kind of rain guerrilla rain."

I looked blank.

"Guerrilla," she repeated. "I am sure this is an English word."

Guerrilla? Gorilla? Neither giant chimps nor terrorists made a whole lot of sense here. The rain was not furry with a perchance for bananas and neither did it (fortunately) appear to be armed with guns.

Later on at the restaurant with the rain still hammering down outside, we remembered this inquiry and a third member of our group drew out his electronic Japanese to English dictionary.

"Guerrilla," he showed me the word.

"It is because it comes unexpectedly," my friend told me. "Like an attack." She viewed her empty sake glass. "I am sorry, I am drunk. I cannot explain further."

And that was the end of that~

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