Back in the saddle, back to the grind, back in black. However you sing it, vacation is over. I like living in Japan and intend to be here for a substantial time, but it would be insincere to say that summer weather here is anything but intolerable. The humidity necessitates changing my clothes three or four times a day, perferably with showers each time. Electricity is expensive but it is simply not possible to work without air conditioning. In summers past, I passed the time in the cool back room of my apartment, parked in from of an electric fan. Now that I have a job and a second floor apartment with comparatively poor airflow, that isn't an option. Japan is expensive and uncomfortable at times.
Idaho, on the other hand, was perfect. Wide open skies (Japan's skies are clogged with power lines to a degree that must be experienced to truly comprehend how deplorable it is) surrounded by green amidst low human populations. Houses are built with more space, permitting more relaxed motion and the ability to flop down on the floor easily. Most of all, there is no humidity to speak of.
To be fair, living permanently in Idaho has its disadvantages. Houses may be 3 times larger for half the price I'll pay in Japan, but there are no jobs for me and my wife. It may take an hour to drive 20 miles in Japan, but the density of Japan means that the environment can be radically different in such a short space. And there is always a train for getting somewhere quickly. In Idaho, you may be able to travel distances quickly, but the distances you have to travel to get to anywhere are so much greater that you are effectively isolated. Professional sports, specialty local cuisine, IMAX, China- and Korea-towns, aquariums, all within two hours by train in Japan. There are alternatives available in Idaho (fishing, camping, hunting) but neither locale offers what the other specializes in, which means that no matter where I'd live, I'd miss the other side.
I would love to live in Idaho and take advantage of its natural bounty. I'm envious of my dad who spends his two week R&R (after working 28 days straight inside the Arctic Circle) running all over the mountains in their Jeep. But he wouldn't be able to do that if he wasn't working thousands miles of away. Perhaps I'll be able to retire in Idaho; I know that I'll be spending at least a couple weeks every summer there.
As for this blog, I've neurotically wondered if its worth it, since it doesn't seem that anyone reads it. But I've realized I'm not writing for anyone, I write it for me. I would love to have people read it and comment on it and I'd like to think that the topics I write about offer something to readers. But that isn't a necessity and I'll keep writing it regardless. I may be moving to a new domain in a few weeks or months, if for no other reason than to further isolate myself from the normal traffic I may otherwise garner. I'm hoping to move more into discussion about ideas that transcend there here and now of immediate politics, but its unavoidable that current events get attention. If anyone has read this far, thank you. I do appreciate your time spent here.
Comments are anticipated and welcome.
Posted by Nutrimentia at October 1, 2004 12:09 PM | TrackBack