Run run run run run runaway

Well,
You know how I said I was going to a sesai festival on Monday... to my eternal disappointment (oh no! no more bitter crunchy slime?) we either couldn't find the festival, or it actually didn't exist (I couldn't quite figure this out) so instead we ate oysters and went on a boat ride around a bit of the island. I think the pictures attached themselves to the last entry. Not a bad day at work.
The rest of the week has been pretty uneventful.

On Tuesday I had a meeting with my supervisor and my English teacher friend and I found out all sorts of things. Apparently my not eating certain ingredients has caused a spate of meetings about my school lunches (which I would happily not eat) and this is still causing some headaches. And also I have three summer holiday days that they want me to take next week. So after a flurry of emails I am off the the mainland for a week! It works rather well since I have orientation (flash hotel, free food) Thursday and Friday anyway.

The heat is still preventing me from sleeping well or long so I decided last night that I needed to exhaust myself so I wouldn't notice the heat.... so I went for a RUN.

First to the actual run. I was apparently quite a sight. I caused cars to miss their lights, people to stop and exclaim and in the dark I nearly ran down and old lady. (I credit myself with one actual crash so far. Last week this man on a scooter was staring so I called out konnichiwa! He konnichiwaed back and then made a right turn into a small side street with an SUV in it. No one was hurt but I think the SUV got a bit dinged.)

The run went well to start with, I ran away from home and down the river and as I got around to town I realised the only way I knew how to get home (apart from the considerable distance I had just come) was through a badly lit tunnel and up a rather overgrown road. So I chanced running through the town. Not a good idea - I got so lost! So many tiny, narrow identical streets!
And as soon as I slowed to a walk I noticed my heels seemed to have turned into giant blisters. Eventually I found the river again and ran a few hundred metres at a time before resting my blisters and then deciding that the faster I went the sooner I got my shoes off and running again.

Just before I got home I bought what I thought was water from one of the many many vending machines. It was that super-sugared sports water that makes me really jittery but I drank it anyway. I have resolved to belatedly desensitise myself to sugary drinks. I will endeavour to drink at least 1 over-sugared beverage every day. I may even try to drink coke. This will protect against future accidental sugar jitters from sports water should I ever run again.

I took photos of my blisters, they are well worth photographing. I should have done mugshots of them holding a ruler... the cover most of my heel and are red and angry. I am wearing socks now and you can see them sticking out. Mmm.

Anyway. Blah blah blah had a visit from SUV man while I was cooking today's lunch (generously seasoned with running sweat mmmm) all very embarrassing. Had cold shower and then made discovery of the day... running makes you hot. Not just while you are running but forever after. It was like all my cells were combusting or doing their thing at a faster hotter rate. No amount of standing under the air conditioning in my native-frightening-stubbies would cool me down. I am still hot today. Amazing. I will keep this in mind for winter. So less sleep, more heat last night but I am now so body-tired that I think I will sleep tonight no matter what (surely I will have cooled down by then?)

Wow. That is a lot about nothing. Next week I will be all exciting and on the mainland! Promise!

PS Simon! what could possibly be wrong with Korean BBQ? It is not like a REAL BBQ I know, but surely there is nothing offensive about a gas fired hotplate and a cook-your-own pile of marinated meat and veges? It is one of my favourite foods! I like to well overcook everything - to a state of extreme crispiness - to make up for all the raw stuff they feed me.