Odds and ends

Today's post is mostly just a few things relating to this blog and the events of the past week that came into my head while walking into town this afternoon to meet Keiko for dinner.

Firstly, it's good to see some people other than Erik posting comments. (Not that I don't enjoy your comments, dude, it's just nice to know I'm reaching the uninitiated.) So keep them coming. I know some of my family are regular readers, so let's hear some feedback from you guys, too.

On a totally different note, I noticed a bit of inflammation around the nail on my left big toe after Saturday's hill climb. It hasn't been sore enough to stop me walking, but it hasn't been getting any better, either, so today I was considering going to the doctor to have it checked out. But this afternoon I tried a little first aid of my own instead (I'll spare you the gory details), and it seems to be on the mend.

Tuesday's 5.5km was a morning shopping expedition, and as it was spitting when I got up I thought I'd give my old rain suit a test. It's a Gore-Tex one I bought in Japan years ago and stopped wearing after I more or less wore the seat out by cycling in it to university over several winters. I thought I might have thrown it out, but I found it in a bag stashed at the back of the hallway cupboard. Anyway, despite the fact that it stopped raining pretty much as soon as I stepped out the front door, I kept the rain suit on just to see how it felt. I got a few odd looks from people along the way, and the guy at the liquor shop quipped in that jovial, ironic manner that we Kiwis specialize in, the one that Paul Theroux mistook for sarcasm, "You're all ready for the blast, then?" Then again, maybe he was being sarcastic. The "blast" didn't come till the following day, when I once again donned the rain suit for the 3km journey to the local supermarket and back. It seemed to do the trick. I'll just have to remember not to sit in any puddles.

After writing yesterday about Daikokuya, I had a look today at the tentative schedule Erik and I have put together for walking the Nakasendo which has us leaving Kyoto on 20 October and realized we could be staying there on my birthday. I hope they have some good champagne.

Finally, it's so nice to see there are still people around who look you in the eye, smile and say "hello" when you pass them in the street.

Distance walked today: 5.2km
Total distance walked since blog began: 75.4km