It`s Wednesday afternoon here, and we`re getting drenched. The rain started ten minutes in to my forty minute bike ride to work this morning. It stayed pretty light until later in the morning, but it`s been coming down hard for a few hours now and shows no signs of letting up. I`ll be biking home in three hours or so; I can only hope that the Rain Gods get bored and move on before then.

Things here in Naruto are pretty decent. I`m settling into my role as an ALT, a job that really is part teacher, part circus exhibit, and part walking cultural artifact. The elementary schools are generally tons of fun, although the Japanese kid-habit of randomly grabbing me by various body parts and offering commentary (my arms? `Hairy.` my legs? `Long.` my stomach? `big!`) can be a bit trying. Junior high is less fun- the students are shyer and classes can drag when no one is willing to talk. Have to keep working on that.

The weather has cooled considerably, although we`ve had a bit of an Indian Summer the last few days. I`ve learned my way around town, and regained the Japanese language proficiency that I lost while back in the States. I`ve even improved some, I think. Lissete and I are starting formal lessons tonight, weather permitting. As Lissette mentioned in her last post, the combination of diet-change and increased exercise has led to some weight loss. I`m not sure how much exactly, but my clothes definitely are looser. It`s also made a huge different to my blood-sugar levels. I`ve cut my humalog intake from ~60 units per day to ~35, and lantus from 40 units to 30. I had a couple of nasty hypoglycemic episodes early on while still adjusting, but I`ve levelled out since then. Now I just need to figure out how to get more test strips.

Monday is October 5th, the yearly celebration of the anniversary of my birth. This one is the much-feared three-oh. I`m not really sure how I feel about that. My life doesn`t bear any kind of resemblance to the plans I made in high school or college, but I suppose that`s typical. I have this nagging feeling that turning 30 should be more momentous than it is.

While I don`t regret moving here, I do wish I could celebrate in the company of old friends. If you`re reading this, then you probably qualify. Hoist a glass for me on the 5th, and pour a 40 on the curb for the death of my ill-spent youth. ;-)