State of the Ming
And here we are, back and interested in establishing contact with the outside world. Hopefully you all are around to care!
The holidays were quite lovely, quite a few people in and out of the house for the holidays. My father and Brian's sister Sara were about and we gave them the mild grand tour of the Hokuriku area. There are pictures to be seen, both on Flickr and my father's LJ gallery. Place were seen, food was eaten, merriment was had. Stuffed quite a few people in our apartment for Christmas, so WEEE! Brian and I brought in the new year in Hawaii where we went to be part of the festivities surrounding his best friends wedding. It was nice - that group is as laid back as they come. The trip, even at its most stressful moments, was the most relaxing I've had in eons. Hawaii was as lovely as ever and made coming back to the cold doom that is Ishikawa more difficult than I would have hoped. It was all a needed break, making the time away from the office golden and all too quickly gone.
We returned to the normally scheduled activity that is life and proceeded to find ways of keeping warm. Lately, that has meant we are living in the 4' x 6' area that is our bed, which lies on top of a heated carpet and under an electric blanket. From there we do everything - paperwork, grading, communication with the outside world, paying bills - and if it can't be done from there, then as a rule, it has not been getting done. So consequently the light bulbs in the other room went out without being replaced, three weeks of laundry piled up around us (literally, because being outside of the bed was too cold), and well the whole place is (ok was, over the weekend there was a dent made in most everything except the laundry) in a state of general dereliction. We both got fussy enough to doing something about it and it is nearly liveable again. Basically, when the kitchen light went out and we could no longer find clothes to wear because the apartment was too dark, action needed to be taken.
The week is going ok. I'm getting ready for my Japanese interview for a fourth year, work looks all right and I am full of optimism about everything and anything. Now I just wish my feet were warm.
The holidays were quite lovely, quite a few people in and out of the house for the holidays. My father and Brian's sister Sara were about and we gave them the mild grand tour of the Hokuriku area. There are pictures to be seen, both on Flickr and my father's LJ gallery. Place were seen, food was eaten, merriment was had. Stuffed quite a few people in our apartment for Christmas, so WEEE! Brian and I brought in the new year in Hawaii where we went to be part of the festivities surrounding his best friends wedding. It was nice - that group is as laid back as they come. The trip, even at its most stressful moments, was the most relaxing I've had in eons. Hawaii was as lovely as ever and made coming back to the cold doom that is Ishikawa more difficult than I would have hoped. It was all a needed break, making the time away from the office golden and all too quickly gone.
We returned to the normally scheduled activity that is life and proceeded to find ways of keeping warm. Lately, that has meant we are living in the 4' x 6' area that is our bed, which lies on top of a heated carpet and under an electric blanket. From there we do everything - paperwork, grading, communication with the outside world, paying bills - and if it can't be done from there, then as a rule, it has not been getting done. So consequently the light bulbs in the other room went out without being replaced, three weeks of laundry piled up around us (literally, because being outside of the bed was too cold), and well the whole place is (ok was, over the weekend there was a dent made in most everything except the laundry) in a state of general dereliction. We both got fussy enough to doing something about it and it is nearly liveable again. Basically, when the kitchen light went out and we could no longer find clothes to wear because the apartment was too dark, action needed to be taken.
The week is going ok. I'm getting ready for my Japanese interview for a fourth year, work looks all right and I am full of optimism about everything and anything. Now I just wish my feet were warm.