fresh to death

hey. betcha thought i forgot all about you!
naw.
the truth is i haven't felt much like writing in this high summer heat. i don't even want to touch my own skin, much less the warm keyboard of my sweet little white portal to the outside world. i began emotionally preparing myself for the feeling of being painfully hot and disgusting for months before it began, but in fact, after surviving last summer, it doesn't feel that bad. recently i was told this summer is unseasonably hot, and i was truly surprised. i think, miraculously, my sweater-weather-to-the-bone self adjusted. sure, i still walk around like i'm in a coma, but it's not a miserable coma.
when i was little and mom and i went on long summer road trips to visit family in texas without an air conditioner (think 11 hours!), we'd spray ourselves off with a mist of water, and it worked pretty well to cool us off. but here, you're already swimming in the air, and the idea of being wetter doesn't really help. sweat doesn't evaporate, so what's the point of sweating? a hand-held fan is indispensable. even glasses sweat so much, you could get a full gulp of water from all the condensation on the outside.
people walk around with hand towels folded on top of their heads or around their necks, and eveyone is constantly fanning, blotting, wiping, and saying that one word that wins for most-uttered in every japanese summer "atsui"--hot.
here's a little mini-video i made featuring some of the teachers at my school.



so today is the first day of school. that means the first day the students have to be here; the teachers always have to be here. i'm sticking to my desk top and sweating puddles into my chair, but i have nothing to do for the next five hours, so finally i'll sit down and tell you some things.
firstly, it's time you saw my car. as i mentioned before, it's like a really big rollerskate. not particularly roomy, and the engine could maybe power a lawn mower, but functional as a virtual Whole New World of privacy, convenience, and entertainment.


it's a suzuki alto, mere bare bones of a car, but thank the lord it has air conditioning. still needs a name, though. i'm open to suggestions.

one of my favorite things about the summer here is the abundance of kakigori (shaved ice) stalls. i've found the best one in town with truly angel soft ice, and the lady knows her stuff...she puts in plenty of syrup. this one's mango. other notable flavors are cola and melon. no grape, no cherry, no orange. and they laughed when i asked if they had banana.


after i ate this, i rode a train for two hours; had a final sleepover with marina, and flew to north america.


here's marina showing her high-spiritedness. neiiigh!