Haven't posted recently since my general mood would have meant an even more introspective, self-obsessed and maudlin entry than usual. Just like the one below in fact.

Despite the strange mood I've been in for over a week now, no longer having any idea what I want to do at any one time so electing to sleep or get drunk or just stare into space watching my breath make patterns of steam against the curious glittery stucco on the apartment walls. Despite the cold and lack of central heating and insulation in Japan, which gives rise to the odd phenomena of it often being colder inside the apartment than outside on the balcony and despite the fact that school starts again tomorrow and I don't want to teach, oh my god I really don't. Standing and speaking....really....very....slowly to a bunch of kids sending mails on their mobiles, reading manga, sorting through their Print Club photos and mimicking my voice by repeating what I say in an odd mongoloid fashion. It's the very definition of fun most of the time but not the way I'm feeling right now it ain't. Oh and what joy we'll all have as staff members attempting to communicate with each other using only nouns and huge, flambouyant hand gestures.
I also have a cold.

However...

Despite all this I'm feeling really rather good today because I finally unpacked my travel bag (LAZY!) and within, shining like the small speck of gold in the otherwise sand filled prospector's pan, was my Monkey Photo.

I've been grinning at it ever since, remembering the feel of it's leathery hands on my neck and the cautious little 'eeeks' it would emit as it's head jerked every which way and it clambered, with no regard for personal body space, all over my head. I wanted to keep it.



Yeah, monkey's should be occupational therapists.

Now I'm going to go eat a banana, which in Japanese is 'banana'.