it's not life that matters but the journey...

my sleep schedule has been so weird lately. Last night, after returning so late, I was online until 2 a.m. and then slept sporadically until 3:45 a.m. when Masahiko finally returned from Tokyo. I awoke again at 6 to feed the cat, then slept again until about 9:30 - then finally got up. tonight I think I'll try to sleep before midnight since we will be leaving tomorrow by 8:30 a.m. to go to the ocean, more specifically the Izu Peninsula east of here. Masahiko's friend, who he played with yesterday, invited us to go there with his family - the boys will surf, and the girls (and his friend's kids) will hang out and watch, I guess. I just hope its not too cloudy or raining - if its sunny, it should be fun!

that got me thinking: I wonder how many people know where I'm living in Japan? 
here's a map, and if you can see where it says Shizuoka, and just above that Fuji, that's where I'm living!  so you can see in relation to Tokyo and other places, just where we are:  http://www.expedia.com/pub/agent.dll

tomorrow we are going to the Izu Peninsula, which is in Shizuoka prefecture just to the east of here (you can find Fuji on this map, and look to the east where it says Izu Hanto):  http://www.expedia.com/pub/agent.dll  of course I don't know exactly where we are going, but I'll let you know when I get back!

oh, and on a sad note, my digital camera died - its gone to camera heaven, so I have to see if I can get film (and a battery) for my other camera so that I can take some photos!  and I need to buy another digital camera  - which shouldn't be a problem here in the land of electronics (if I can be sure that it has a booklet and software in English - otherwise, it won't do me much good!!)

I'm thinking I should start a series of postings on here about strange Japanese customs and daily living in Japan (such as toilets, trains, restaurants, shoes, showers, etc...)  what do you want to hear about first?