The Road to Becoming a Leather Craftsman｜Episode 13

One day, while I was buying supplies at the leather shop as usual,

the senior managing director who handled my account asked me,

"What do you do for a part-time job?"

When I answered,

"I work part-time at a restaurant,"

he said,

"Rolling leather at a leather shop would teach you more than cooking at a restaurant, wouldn't it?"

"If you're OK with us, why not work part-time here?"

and so I ended up working part-time there.

I immediately quit my restaurant job,

and worked full days at the leather shop three days a week.

The remaining four days I spent making things.

That became my routine.

Getting from my home to Asakusa took

three trains and one bus.

An hour and a half each way, door to door.

The commute was pretty tough.

On top of that, when I stood smoking a cigarette while waiting for the bus in Asakusa in the morning, looking the way I did,

it seems the spot was sometimes used as a gathering place for day laborers,

and several times

"Hey kid, over here,"

people would call out to me.

"No, I'm not with you (lol)."

We had exchanges like that.

And so,

my life working part-time at the leather shop began.

To be continued.