Holy fuck, it's hot right now! I don't know much about temperature, but I can tell you that the computer says it's 24°C outside, and it is a plain fact that I have to open all the windows (well, the ones with the bug screens) and strip to my underwear, whenever I'm at home.
Anyways, I'm in a good mood right now, so I'll tell you what I did today. First of all, I biked to the bank, where I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that my gas bill was about ¥1,000 cheaper than I expected. I then biked to the post office, where I handed in the request to incinerate the pork sausage that my mother sent me, apparently in violation of Japanese animal quarantine laws (damn; It would've been great with beer).
Next, I biked to Matsumoto City Hall, where I got my Alien Registration Card emended (vis-à-vis my recently-renewed passport and visa, and my new work address). I then headed over to Nawate Dori and bought a small, jingly frog present for my student-prodigy, Mao, whose birthday it will be on July ninth, and to whom I promised a present if she would write two week's worth of half-a-page-a-day journal entries in English (she is only eight years old, but her discourse in English is on the level of a twelve year-old). For some reason, there were no less than two cop cars at Nawate Dori today, a doubly-troubling sight for any gaijin. At any rate, the place seems like a really unlikely place for a stakeout of any kind.
Finally, on my way back to Kotobuki, I stopped by the Super Sports Xebio store to buy an excellent sleeping bag for a mere ¥999, and then stopped off at the Tsuruya to buy some food. After a rather uncomfortable, sticky and sweaty nap, I edited the Zenkō-ji article on Wikipedia (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zenk%C5%8D-ji), and here I am now.
Well, I might as well throw some links at you. Here are some amazing, colour photographs of pre-revolutionary Russia, taken by the Tzar's own photographer, Sergey Prokudin-Gorsky, between 1909 and 1915 (more about the guy here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prokudin-Gorskii).
I did some reading on the Japanese geisha and found out that they were, basically not at all prostitutes, and that this myth was essentially created by American military personnel, who created the "geesha girl" (note the spelling) image with their demand for sexual services (and the industry of prostitutes who merely dressed like geisha; cf. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geisha#Geisha_and_prostitution and en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oiran).
Finally, here's a handy-dandy Japanese year converter. Japan has been using the Gregorian calendar since 1873, but Japanese years, as you may or may not know, are based on Japanese eras (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_era_name). Currently, it is the 平成 [Heisei] era, which corresponds to the first year of the reign of the current emperor, Akihito (1989). 2007 is thus Heisei 19 (year of the Pig). 1981 is Showa 56 (year of the Rooster). Here's an interesting link to the history of Japanese calendars.
Well, I think that's the end of this wonderful entry - and what better way to finish it, than with an image of a titanium, jewel-encrusted dildo? (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Golddildowide.jpg) Enjoy. ;)