when i walk down the street, i been trippin' on my feet*
Ah. But it is only 3:30pm and it is dark outside. The winter solstice, for most parts of the world, usually means that the days will start to get longer. For Hokkaido it just means that it gets darker even earlier due to day after day of snow storms as we head into the dead of winter. Talk about rough. Whew...
I'm finding it hard to admit that the lack of sunshine here has affected me as much as it has. Having lived in Minnesota for so many years, it kind of hurts my state pride. But alas, I must admit it. The fact that the sun never seems to come out here has taken its emotional toll on me. I find myself longing to see the sun again. To make matters worse - they don't sell just plain Vitamin D supplements to help tricking my body into
thinking I've been exposed to sunlight. You can only find Vitamin D in combination with other vitamins and/or minerals and then it is in such miniscule amounts that it wouldn't make a dent in what your body needs in order to maintain a good mood.
I'm currently in the middle of winter school break -meaning that the kids are out of school, but I still have to "work" in the office. I am, however, taking a short vacation starting next Thursday. I spent the better part of today doing research, planning train schedules, booking hotels, etc. It is going to be an expensive trip considering I won't be doing anything too exciting. The expense comes mainly from the train fare. If I weren't going alone, I would drive there. But seeing as it is a 10-hour drive (in good weather), I wasn't about to undertake it alone. The train fare is almost half of the cost of going - it is double the cost of what I'll be paying at the hotels! Despite the cost, I'll admit that I am pretty excited for taking the train. Because my trips usually include other people, I end up driving and everyone splits gas. It's economical, but I don't really get to look at the scenery that way, or get a chance to close my eyes when I'm tired. This way, at least when it gets dark, I can close my lids for a bit and still be traveling towards my destination. :D So I should probably stop complaining about how much it costs. I think it is an okay expense once in a while. Plus, it is more expensive because I am traveling during a peak vacation time.
Not much else is going on. It is sometimes rough trying to get into a good pattern after such a big move. I've been here for over 5 months, but it still feels like I am adjusting. I bought a clarinet (used, wooden one) to practice, so that has brought me some relief through music. I also bought an aerobics step so that I can do step aerobics in the winter. I've only used that once, but it was fun. I would like to use it more, but it needs to have some grippy stuff put on the top of it because my feet keep sliding around. New shoes + new plastic step = umm...no. XD
What else? I feel like I never update here, so I don't even know where to start or even what people would find interesting to read. I wanted to post about the eccentricities of Japan and the little things that surprise me every day, but I can't really because there are just
too many. By the time the day is over, I've noticed and forgotten tens of little things. And now that I am getting more used to things, there is so much that I don't even notice anymore. Weird things that I'm sure when I first came here amused me and probably would have amused you too. But those things, that newness, is a bit dulled and harder to see now. Ma na...se la vie.
Winter break lasts (for me) until January 18th. After that I hit the working fast and hard with two weeks of solid teaching. I've prepared most of what I need for the first 3 days back, but should probably start getting the other classes prepared. So ciao for now!
*Weezer - Put Me Back TogetherLabels: life, life in japan, wangst