"Even a stopped clock tells the right time twice a day"

"...I think we are entering the arena of the unwell."

I've had a cold for a couple of days now. I'd put it down to a combination of bad food, bad booze, bad sleeping hours, bad working hours and bad eating hours, which all come together to make up what one philosopher once referred to as "the good life." Hopefully my stockpile of Lemsips that I brought from the UK will last me through it, as decent over-the-counter medicine is hard to get in Japan (unless of course you're planning to poison a family member ... 'nuff said).

I've started almost all my classes by now. Japanese Level 4 seems to be alright, obviously needs a little more commitment than Level 3, but nothing that I can't handle. I'll post more about my classes as they go on, as I've only had the introductory lessons so far.

I'll leave you with this story about Japan's homeless, who are being forcibly evicted from a park in Osaka that "will be the site of the World Rose Convention 2006 from May 11 to 17." Sounds a little like a non-lethal form of the "social cleansing" practiced by police and paramilitaries in Latin America. Trying to keep the problem out of sight, but drawing more attention to it as a result.