Noel left yesterday morning for his new job in Hanyu, catching the first train out of Katase at 04:54 so he could make it there for an 08:30 meeting. I'm kinda bummed now that he left, because I don't have anyone to talk to in English anymore. Well, some guys at work speak English, of course, but it's not the same if you're not talking to a native speaker. (Sachie doesn't want to try her English around me, either. I think Noel was able to get some of his J-lang skills back by talking to her, though.) Plus, it helps to have an old friend around to make one feel at ease. Noel really wanted to get a job that would get him a work visa, though, so it's good that he found one. I still have to send him his stuff via takkyuubin, since he had to start in a hurry. The place is pretty far from here, maybe 2.5 hrs, so it's not likely we'll be visiting anytime soon.

Since I brought a guitar with me (I meant to learn but never found time to), Noel was practicing on that for large chunks of the day while I was at work. He's into some of the more folksy music like Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, and Bread. By the time he left, he had pretty much mastered Bread's "Aubrey", which got stuck in my head: "...and Aubrey was her name...." Not really my cup of tea music-wise, thought it has its merits. But when he played "Dust in the Wind"?! Come on!!