A-noid

It's funny how your life can change when you don't have internet at home. I've found myself spending a hell of a lot more money outside the house, doing things like shopping or eating out almost every single day. I've also been working out a lot more, playing basketball like 4 times a week, and traveling whenever I don't have work. The apartment is cleaner than my one in LA ever was, and I do things like hang up clothes right after I get back from the laundromat.

On a related note, here's a list of things that have been annoying me lately:

1) No internet at home. Obviously I like to be able to respond to email in a timely manner, but the biggest thing has been my inability to share pictures...at all. No uploading to websites, no attaching to email, nothing. At work, every site I use is blocked, even when I bring in my own laptop. I have this expensive camera and have taken over 2000 photos already (record is 888 in one day), and no way of showing them to anyone unless they're near my laptop.

2) Spiderwebs. I walk into a spider web at least once a day, often in the same place...my stairwell. It baffles me how a place where people walk every day has spider webs that span the width of the walkway...those are some quick-workin spiders.

3) Tiny bugs. Small enough to fit through the mesh screen that goes over my windows. I'm afraid I'm going to inhale one. Or that I already have.

4) Driving 30 minutes to the gym. I still go at least 2 or 3 times a week, but it's annoying. The gym closes at 9, so last entrance is 8:15. They're closed on Mondays. I was spoiled by the 24 hour fitness 2 minutes from my parents' house or 10 minutes from my apartment.

5) Not being able to find clothes. It's not that I can't find proper sizes...there's actually a fair amount of large clothing in my area...it's that the stuff is just silly looking. I like an Engrish shirt as much as the next guy, but I'm not paying 20 bucks for it.

6) ATM fees. Imagine going to your OWN bank at 4:30pm and having to pay $1 to pull money out of an ATM. Imagine having to pay those fees at any time on the weekend. Imagine a country that still rarely uses credit cards. Imagine your bank being open from 9-3 on weekdays, and not opening on weekends. Awesome.

That's all. It's said that every JET loves a good whining session. My life here is actually pretty good, but it's when things are mainly going well that you notice the bad more easily. I've been eating better, getting tons of exercise, getting good lessons in taiko, traveling a bit, and saving money. I just need to find something to do in town on a weekend night besides play darts and meet more young Japanese folks, and I'll be set.