A few other random things

I thought I would share a few other random things. First: a view of the bridge I walk everyday to work. I am trying to walk to and from work all the way from my house. It is about an hour each way, and I am not consistently doing both ways every day. Its beautiful and refreshing, though, so I will try to keep it up as long as I can. I was informed that once the rainy season and following humid season hit, it would be wise to give this activity up. I doubt I will need much convincing. The weather is gorgeous right now, though. It feels like it is about 80 outside and just a touch humid. Its funny (terrifying?) to think this is just springtime.

The next thing I found were these jelly cups you can get at the grocery store. They are either grape, apple or peach flavored and are rather filling without being full of calories (i.e. the perfect munching food for Russell while he is coding.) They are also fun to eat. They kind of slide out of their little cups into your mouth and are just slightly denser than jello. We avoided then at first, though, because of the large circle on the front with the two faces - both with Xs for eyes. Was this a cultural misunderstanding? No. On further inspection, it is a caution not to give the cups to children or the elderly, who might choke to death on the throat-sized gelatin balls. To be honest. I am well aware of the choking hazard every time I eat one, and I don"t have to be a child or an elderly person to feel threatened. But then again... they're really damn good!

FInally, I had the opportunity to try Japanese pizza again. I had a very distinct memory from my first visit to Japan years ago of an overpriced, tiny, not terribly tasty piece of cardboard with mayonnaise and tuna on it. Don't get the wrong idea, I'm not fussy about toppings - I loved the tuna, corn, tomato pizzas in Spain - but Japanese pizzas were just way too expensive for the end result. Even so, we decided that it would be fun to have a pizza party in the staff room to celebrate midterms week, so we got down to ordering toppings. We ended up with a meat-lovers pizza, a three cheese pizza and a margarita pizza (meaning tomato and basil - not tequila and salt). I have to say, while the price was still exorbitant ($28 for a Japanese large, which is equivalent to an American Medium) the particular place we ordered from definitely beat my expectations taste-wise. The three cheese pizza was especially tasty with little chunks of brie on top. If I ever feel so overwhelmed with the need for pizza that I am willing to part with a decent chunk of change, at least I will enjoy the result. Thank you, Japan!