'Bigger than God'

What's it like to be pointed at and constantly made to feel different from others because of the way you dress or look? Is this the gaijin (foreigner) experience? I wouldn't know, I'm too busy to give it much thought, but this morning Santa very graciously allowed me to step into his shoes and red suit to entertain 75 kids across town at a "mansion" complex (in British English we would call this a block of flats). Getting on the bus was a doddle, only retirees got on with us (Yoshie was Mrs Claus) and seemed too pre-occupied with staring at the back of the seat in front of them to notice us at the back. We got a few more stares crossing over Abiko station from the south to the north exit. But once in the party, the screaming adoration of the kids and flickering of flash bulbs gave me delusions of grandeur: So this is how John Lennon felt!

For more pictures of St. Nick, click here.