Haven’t been updating a lot lately. It’s been difficult. Lots of reasons for it, but there are two big ones.

1. I kind of…don’t know what to write about? Okay, sure I could write about  more record stores in Japan – and I plan to, trust me, but I feel like I should spread those out a bit. That shit gets old. So if anyone has any suggestions, let me know.

2. I’ve been HELLA BUSY! Work is, well, a lot of work! On the weekends I’m usually at the office for 11+ hours, and during the week I’m usually in around 7:00 am, which means I have to wake up at the ungodly hour of 5:30 am. I still get two days off a week, thankfully, but on those days I typically spend as little time as possible inside my apartment and don’t really feel the need to write. When you live in one of the most exciting metropolises on Earth, you really don’t like spending your days off cooped up in a tiny room, y’know?

But yeah, right now my life is pretty focused around my work. And I’m oddly fine with that. I’ve never been one to settle well into an office job. Cubicles typically make me want to die. But I guess the fact that I spend most of my day teaching helps counter that. Teaching is fun! At least, I find it fun. It’s one of the few jobs I’ve ever had that I’ve actually found emotionally rewarding. That’s a nice switch from when I used to work in a warehouse packaging porn (long story).

As much as I love my job, that morning commute, it’s a real mother. While I’ve gotten used to waking up at 5:30 in the fucking morning, it’s not something that I ever think I’ll be happy about. Forcing myself to crawl out of bed before the sun is even out is not easy. And there isn’t a strong enough coffee (especially in Japan) to put a bounce in my step that early.

Once again, music to the rescue. Continue reading →