I'll take you in my backpack

7/13/16 I'm not sure how you begin a post about an experience like this so I think I'll start by giving a little background about the epic Fuji-san. A volcano in Japan, it was officially registered as a World Heritage Site in June of 2013. It stands 3776.24m (12,389 ft) high and is the highest peak in Japan. It is considered one of three holy mountains (along with Mt Tate and Mt Haku). More than 200,000 climb to the summit of Fuji each year. The last eruption was in 1707-08 but in 2000/2001 there was increased seismic activity under the volcano, raising concerns about a possible reawakening. So let's get down to it! We arrived via highway express bus, it dumps you at the 5th station, where everyone starts their ascent. Now that I look back at that I had no idea what I was getting into (thankfully). It was pouring down rain when we got off of the bus so it was a quick dash into one of the shops to get our gear on and everything straightened out, purchase our sticks an

7/12/16 When you think of touristy things to do in Tokyo you think of shrines, temples, the Tokyo Tower, and hitting all of the various areas that are a must see...but what you should be thinking about is getting your happy ass in a go kart, dressed in a costume, and cruising the streets. This was by far the best way to tour Tokyo, well worth every penny. We did the 3 hour option and it was 8000 yen (so about $80 at the time because of the exchange rate) you can use their GoPro or other camera things they have to capture the experience, or of course bring your own, I didn't want to mess with bringing my own, so I used theirs. You get a quick into, how to use the car, what to do, what not to do (ram bumpers and use the horn, except in Shibuya). Then we were off, which left me slightly nervous. Yes it drives like a normal car, sort if. Missing some safety features, like a seatbelt, and well, you're low to the ground, and mine was missing some working lights, minor detail

6/27/16 After about a week of swelling and pretty tender healing, things got MUCH better. Granted, the healing is SUPER slow on this and still I am needing to clean 2 times a day (just with hot water and a q tip) to prevent build up and bump formation (technical term of course!) I went in last week to have the center ball put back in, figuring they would pop it back in pinch things together and I'd be on my way. Unfortunately I was mistaken about how all of that was going to go down. They removed the entire ring, sterilized (yes I'm thankful for that), re fitted for the new ball), then proceeded to put the ring back in with the piercing needle, straight needle in a round-ish hole, doesn't feel good. It took probably 15 minutes for everything but this piercing studio is meticulous. He inspected the piercing and recommended that I continue 2 times a day cleaning to prevent bump formation (I have small ones at the top of the piercing because of some build up/not following my c

4/17/16 So a few days ago I got my daith pierced (4/13 actually). I had done a bit of research on it. Honestly just trying to figure out if this was going to be a breeze or the mother bitch of all piercings. I have several piercings but since my mom reads my blog I won't to into all those details here (you're welcome mom!). From what I read it sounded like it would be a breeze, similar to nose, which honestly I didn't feel until they put the jewelry in. Lies. Complete bullshit in fact. I will say that with a caveat, I think it completely depends on your anatomy, which in turn impacts how slowly or quickly the piercer can ram that piercing rod through there. I was a lucky little winner of the bad anatomy game apparently because as soon as I sat down and he started drawing he said "I'm going to have to go slow and you can't move" to which my response was "sweet Jesus please go as fast as possible". He did not. But I also understand that he need

1/11/16 I'll preface this by saying that I had great intentions when I signed up for this (and the Nago half marathon 1/24/16). I started a training plan, I stuck to it for the first half, etc.  somewhere along the way things fell off schedule. Then I had an unplanned trip to the US (and back to Japan) which resulted in severe jet lag. It also resulted in no running. Prior to leaving for the US I had been experiencing hip issues so I was not running, resting the hip. Flash forward to 1/4 when I returned to Japan. I ran 3.6 miles (my first run in almost a month) and it hurt. The following day I ran 3 again and was stifled by the hip pain. I took the rest of the days off until race day  Getting there was an adventure. A 3 train 45 minute adventure. Which on the way back home with baby deer legs would prove quite the challenge.  I was most certainly the only white person there; also likely the only person who couldn't read or speak Japanese. So when I was tryi