Totally rad

Being without bike, I was recently “forced” to walk to my nearest station, a decent 2-km trek. And during one of these trips to the station, I noticed something. Almost all the larger parks were undergoing some kind of construction.
I had heard about nearby schools having the top layer of their playgrounds shaved off after traces of radioactive elements from the wrecked Fukushima No. 1 plant were detected, but didn’t initially make the connection until arriving at my station. Were they shaving the playground at the park not half a kilometer from my apartment?!?
On my way to work the next day, I decided to leave home a bit earlier than usual to see if this was the case — and lo and behold, that is exactly what they were doing, though one park had the audacity to say they were merely doing routine soil removal. Routine?!
I have to admit, seeing all of this has left me a bit dumbstruck. I haven’t been one to freak out over the nuclear crisis, but this, coupled with the recent revelations that the area near my home is considered a “hot spot,” has left me a bit unnerved.
With my wife leaving her job in March and having wanted a change of pace — not to mention that we’re trying to have children — recent radiation-related revelations (see what I did there?) have been the straw that broke the camel’s back: We will most likely move shortly after her work finishes. The thing is, working in Tokyo, we can run, but can’t hide from the unseen threat of radiation.
I only hope that in March — a year after the outbreak of the crisis — things are a bit more clear. But I highly doubt that will be the case.